Jinxed in Love
by Vivian Verbose
Summary: You know that phrase, "Lucky in Love"? Well it doesn't apply to me. I'm not very lucky. After all, he lied to me, set the HIVE after me, and broke my heart. But I'm not bitter at all. Nope, definitely not... And I definitely don't still love him. KFxJinx
1. The Rescue

Sharp, white pangs of pain sizzled through my body with every step, but I continued to run, even though my right ankle threatened to collapse me onto the pavement. I grimaced and wiped my forehead, unsurprised when my fingertips came back dipped crimson in blood. Thank you, Gizmo, for that wonderful wound.

A heavy cough wormed its way up my throat, and more blood splattered into my hand as I covered my mouth. I grimaced again. Probably internal damage from that beating Mammoth gave me.

As I turned off the street where See-More would have had an easier time finding me, I ducked into a dark alleyway, sank to my knees, and flicked my finger at the entrance. A pink spark jumped from my fingertip to the cement and spread outward and upward, enveloping me in a bubble of pink. Then it disappeared.

Safe. I breathed a ragged sigh of relief as I collapsed against the brick wall behind me. That protection hex would break and warn me if anyone got within a threatening distance. I even extended the hex to the ground beneath me. I had learned the nature of Kyd Wykkyd's attacks the hard way. He liked to sneak up on his enemies.

Unlike a very tactless Billy Numerous.

I ripped off part of my black sleeve and plastered it against my forehead, wincing as the fabric touched the raw wound.

Someone had once told me that superheroes never bleed. I rubbed my fingers together to try and cleanse them of my blood. So did that mean that after two years, I was still deemed unfit to be a hero? Was two years of good just not good enough?

I sucked in a sharp breath as a new wave of pain washed over me.

In a futile attempt to make myself more comfortable, I tipped my battered body farther back and winced as I made contact with the wall. After spending almost two years fighting alongside these guys, and then spending another two fighting _against_ them, I should have learned their every move. Unfortunately for me, in the past two years since I switched sides, my old teammates learned some new moves.

But unfortunately for them, so did I. And I had new teammates now.

Or something like that. I hadn't really tested that friendship yet – not even once in two years. But all that was about to change.

With my free hand, I dug inside my pocket, and my hand flinched only the slightest bit as it brushed the sought-after object. The memories of my failure, my regret, my heartache, even after two years away were especially poignant. I drew out my Titan's communicator.

As I examined it, I wondered at how the time had flown. Had it really been two years since the Brain's takedown? That meant that I had stayed good for all of two years. And for little less than two years, I had managed to avoid a certain blue-eyed, auburn-haired, confident, romantic, handso–

"Stop it!" I hissed to myself fiercely. This was no time to start waltzing down memory lane.

_You are in a critical condition. You are alone, and you have five notorious villains hunting you down. And you're about to contact your only allies whom you aren't even sure are willing to come to your aid. Get a grip. You can't start daydreaming again about that cocky, no-good, heart-breaking–_

I nearly screamed. I was thinking those awful, intruding thoughts about _him_ again.

_After all_, I thought in a huff._ It's mostly his fault that I'm in this situation. My old H.I.V.E Five team wouldn't be hunting me down if _he_ hadn't converted me to good. Him and his stupid roses._

Deep in my heart, I knew that he wasn't to blame for this, and I was truly happy with my choice, but it still made me feel better to be able to place the blame on someone else.

I hesitated before flipping open the yellow communicator in my hands. I held down the button on the side.

"Calling all Titans. This is…" I hesitated again. What if they didn't want to come to rescue me?

...But what other choice did I have? I cleared my throat. "This is Jinx. Please someone help me. I'm in dire need of assistance. I repeat. I'm in dire nee–"

My protection hex snapped.

Two giant arms burst through the brick wall behind me. I gracefully leapt away – or at least, I tried to. My sprained ankle collapsed underneath me. To steady myself, I placed my other hand on the wall across the alley from Mammoth. Suddenly my hand was clasped high above my head. Kyd Wykkyd emerged from a swirling pool of darkness in the wall.

My free hand still held my communicator. I tossed it high into the air, flicked my hand above Kyd Wykkyd's head, and slipped from his grasp as pink sparks erupted from my fingers and through the brick wall. Kyd made a hasty retreat as the wall crumbled down around him. I performed a back handspring and landed on my good foot, catching my communicator in one hand.

Voices rang out behind me.

"Nice moves, peabrain. Your snot-nosed boyfriend teach them to you?"

"Dang, she's just a regular one-flea circus, ain't that right, Billy?"

"Why yes she is, Billy." A high-pitched cackle.

I whirled around to face Gizmo and Billy Numerous. Behind me, I could sense Mammoth and Kyd Wykkyd closing in. I shook my head to clear the black dots ebbing away at my vision. To cover up my pain, I smirked at my old team.

"Gang's all here. Now all we need is–" I cart wheeled out of the way as a huge eye-ball crash-landed where I had been standing a moment before.

"That's my cue," quipped the one-eyed teen. He flipped the dial on the side of his head to reload. He stood on top of the building above the alleyway.

See-More.

"Nice timing, you idiot. Now get down here and help us finish her off!" screeched Gizmo. The miniature genius pressed a button on his backpack. With a mechanical grind, he grew taller on four metal spider-like legs that protruded from his backpack.

I shook my head. Some things never changed.

"H.I.V.E Five! Get her!"

Despite my situation, I couldn't help but roll my eyes. "How clever of you. You think of that all by yourself?"

All five villains rushed me. I counted in my mind. Two from behind. Two from the front. One from above. I concentrated most of my remaining energy. As I let it loose, my vision blurred and my eyes glowed pink. Waves of pink cascaded out of my palms, and I whirled in a circle. Slowly at first, then faster and faster until everything was a blur. Finally, I stopped.

Stray hex magic sparked pink across the devastation. The brick wall to my left had completely collapsed on Mammoth. Gizmo and Billy were buried up to their necks in cement. I glanced upward and saw See-More entangled in a metal fire escape.

I froze. But where was Kyd?

A dark portal swirled open in front of me, and a black figure burst out of the darkness. Kyd kicked me in the stomach, knocking all of my breath out. I slammed against the wall behind me. If I had had the means to scream, I probably would have. Earlier, Mammoth had beaten me up pretty badly and several of my ribs were probably broken.

Now Mammoth was slowly emerging from the pile of brick debris and the others were coming around. I heard See-More moan. My eyes glowed pink again, and I sent a wave of hex magic at Kyd. He simply dived back into his portal to escape.

I hurdled over Billy and Gizmo and ran farther into the alley. I still grasped my communicator in one hand. Fortunately, I was out of sight when my ankle gave out. I dragged myself behind a trashcan. I tried to make myself as small as possible to hide. I brought the communicator once more to my mouth.

"This is Jinx. Please somebody answer me. I really need help."

No response.

I felt the tears on my cheeks before I could stop myself. If the Titans didn't help me, then I was all alone. And I would surely die.

"Please–" My voice cracked and I cursed myself for being so weak. "Please. I-I'm badly hurt, and the H.I.V.E Five are after me. Please come help me. Anybody–" Before my dignity could stop me, a sob choked my throat. "If somebody doesn't help me, I'm going to die and–"

"Oh Ji-nx. Come out, come out wherever you are." I heard Gizmo faintly taunting me from farther back in the alley. I heard his metal spider legs scrape against the cement. I madly scrabbled farther behind the trashcan.

"See-More. Scan for heat sources," barked Gizmo in a shrill voice.

"Already on it, man." See-More paused. And I froze.

I swore that I heard him hiss, "Over there."

I stopped breathing. Fear strangled me. I was completely helpless. My energy was almost gone.

The metal trashcan beside me was flung to the side. Billy Numerouses fanned out and surrounded me but still gave me a pretty wide berth.

"Fitting ain't it Billy? Just like a rat should be caught."

"Yessir, Billy. It's mighty fitting. Like a rat in a trap."

I scowled back at him and wiped my tears away. Anger whisked away part of my fear. Billy charged at me and I flicked a hand at him. A shallow pink wave rippled across the ground as the cement that Billy was standing on collapsed, trapping his legs underground.

"Shut it Numerous. I'd rather be a treacherous rat than be some kind of idiot that plays petty thief and loses to himself at video games."

I ignored his protests as I turned to face the remaining four of the H.I.V.E Five.

"Calling Jinx. Come in Jinx. Do you copy?"

My communicator squawked to life. The visual was blurry, but the voice was oddly familiar. Was it Robin? Or Beast Boy? Or maybe even Cyborg. Heck, I was willing to drop my grudge if he was going to come help me. I was willing to take anybody for help. Actually, anybody but a certain yellow-and-red clad super teen– _No! Never again!_

"H.I.V.E Five! Eat her alive!" The four villains rushed me.

I had no time to taunt Gizmo over his stupid battle cries. I held down the button and shouted, "This is Jinx, over."

"This is–"

Mammoth slammed his fists downwards, meaning to crush me flat. I flickered a hand over the ground, and a rock popped up to trip him. I rolled sideways to avoid the blow. Carried by his own momentum, Mammoth crashed to the ground.

I hadn't heard the name from my communicator, but at this point, I didn't care.

"I'm coming to assist you."

I blocked three of Gizmo's metal legs with a feeble wave of pink. They fell off and Gizmo tottered into a wall. I brought my communicator back up to my mouth. "Please hurry."

Suddenly I sensed a pool of black forming behind me, and I limped away as fast as I could. But I wasn't fast enough. Kyd Wykkyd's cloaked arm shot out at me and grabbed me by the throat. I struggled feebly to loosen his arm, but I was at my limit. I sensed See-More beside me. Kyd Wykkyd stepped out of his portal.

"I say we have some fun with her before we finish her off," suggested See-More. He cackled as he flipped his eye to X-Ray. Realizing, my hands went to tug down my skirt. Behind me, I heard Mammoth's deep chuckle and Billy Numerous' high-pitched one.

"Now, boys, that's no way to treat a lady." A voice echoed down the alley. It was the same voice from the communicator.

I strained my neck to catch sight of my savior. Was it Robin or Beast Boy or Cyborg or–?

In a sudden flash of yellow and red, all five H.I.V.E villains were thrown back, and before I could hit the floor, someone scooped me up bridal-style. For the next five seconds, the world around me was a blur, then, suddenly, everything stopped.

I blinked. I was inside some sort of hospital room. How had I gotten to a medical facility this fast? I glanced up at my rescuer. My jaw dropped.

_Oh god. No._

He smiled down at me as he gently placed me on a hospital bed.

"Don't worry. You're in Titan's Tower. You'll be safe now." His blue eyes twinkled at me. He was no longer the lanky teen I once knew. His shoulders were broader, I dully noted. And he was taller.

He looked me over, taking in my dyed brown hair and contact lenses – I was pretty sure that one was missing, though. One pink eye, one brown.

I felt frozen under his gaze. My mouth was gaping open, but I couldn't close it. My savior raised an eyebrow and grinned. "Wow. That speechless to see me again, huh?"

A wave of fatigue and pain washed over me. I bit back a scream and managed to only grimace at the heavy pain. His eyes widened and he held down a button on the wall, not taking his eyes off me.

"Hey, Raven. Could you come to the medical bay, pronto?" He turned back to me, and I glanced away.

"Why?" I mumbled.

He frowned. "Why what?"

"Why did you do it?" I risked a ragged breath and winced as a bolt of pain shot through my chest. "Why did you save me?"

"Jinx," he murmured my name for the first time. He glanced down. "It's because I couldn't save you last time."

I felt a shiver go down my spine, even as black dots hovered at the edges of my vision, threatening to overwhelm me. I was so ungrateful to him. But I couldn't help it. Not after what he had done to me. My eyes felt like they had two-ton weights glued to them, and they threatened to close.

I blinked. The words spilled from my lips before I could stop them – my moment of weakness.  
"Thank you for coming back," I murmured before the blackness took me. "Kid Flash."

* * *

Thanks for reading guys!

-K


	2. The End of the Beginning

Hello! Yes, I only update fast because I've already written a few chapters...

But try not to get your hopes up for the rest of the fic, ne?

;D

Haha, well, yes.

Thanks for reading!

-K

* * *

The voices were annoying beyond belief. Here I was, trying to sleep, and they kept on butting in and battering against my head and through and around it until I couldn't sleep or make sense of anything. The voices seemed to mesh and whirl until I couldn't even tell if there were just several or several hundred. The pounding in my skull didn't help any though. I winced inwardly as another voice shot through my sub-conscious.

"–obin. You know who she is. She's one of _them_ – one of the H.I.V.E–"

"No! Not anymore! She's changed, Raven. You know it– "

"Kid. I understand that people change. But to change for good? That's something that's impossible. We are who we are. Sometimes we cannot change that."

This voice, the female, sounded emotionless, but to my H.I.V.E Academy-trained ear, I could detect the barest hint of… sorrow? Regret?

I grumbled something and felt my body squirm. The voices immediately stopped. I was still, and they started again, but hushed this time. A new, calmer voice began.

"Raven, you know better than any of us that we can fight who we are destined to be – or who we used to be. And I'm still hurt over what Terra did to us too… but we can't let her affect how we treat other people. Jinx is a new person. I think that she deserves our trust. Remember the bank robbery on 5th Street?"

A reluctant, "Yes."

"Well, it's final then. Jinx stays here – or at least until she heals. Then it's her choice as to what she wants to do."

"Right." A door _whoosh_ed open, then closed.

A moment of silence, then, "Don't worry, Kid. Raven's not so bad. It's just what Terra did, I mean it was so long ago, but still. She was the one that really got Raven to open up and then–"

"I understand. Raven isn't too bad. She healed Jinx after all."

"Don't worry about her. We all know that Jinx hasn't been with the H.I.V.E these past couple of years."

Someone sighed, relieved. "I thought that after what I did, she'd go back to those morons."

"She didn't. We'd get occasional calls, tipping us off on a H.I.V.E robbery, and when we'd get there, we'd find them half worn out and the room pretty mangled. It was almost as if someone had been there before us, keeping the five of them from getting away. Those had been easy wins.

"But just last month, we got called in for a bank robbery on 5th Street. We got there and the robbers were unconscious and beaten up pretty badly.

"Raven sensed minute traces of hex magic sparking through the area, so Cyborg analyzed the scene and found evidence of sped up entropy on one of the guns. It was melted and broken into bits. He also found a hair that had been dyed brown, but was pink at the root.

"I got curious and read some of the statements that the police got. One of the robbers said that when he pulled out his gun, the girl behind him in line threw something at him, and he saw pink before losing consciousness. The police thought that he was delirious or under the influence of some drug because he also reported that her eyes were glowing pink."

"Robin! It _was_ her! She stayed good all this time. Even after what I did… I was so afraid for her… And now I feel like an idiot because I didn't trust her to stay good. I feel awful."

"Resolve things with her. The sooner the better."

"Yeah, I know… But it's not exactly going to be fun."

Cloth rustled. "I'm going back to the living room. Are you going to stay here?"

"Yeah."

"Are you gunna be ok alone?"

"I'm not alone. Jinx is still here."

A laugh echoed through the hushed room. "I know. _Good luck_ if she wakes up."

"Hah…Thanks." The voice was dry and sarcastic.

The door _whoosh_ed twice, and then silence crept back in.

I couldn't make sense of anything. The conversation swirled in the emptiness of my mind. Nothing clicked. I could feel my heart beating in my head. Blood pulsed with every painful beat. I tried to open my eyes, but the weights were too heavy. Two tons, or maybe three? I frowned and tried again. Light flashed through the opened slit, blinding me. For a moment, I was tempted to squeeze them shut again.

I gathered my strength and forced them open. I blinked. The weight was gone. But the room was fuzzy. I tried to lift my hand up to wipe away whatever was obscuring my vision. My arm wouldn't move.

My vision cleared in my panic. Was I paralyzed? Had the H.I.V.E Five damaged my spine? Metal flashed off of pale skin. I was a prisoner then?

I tried tugging at the band of metal bolting my wrists to the bed. They stayed put. For a moment, I questioned where I was. Had the H.I.V.E Five captured me?

No… I remembered somebody defeating them and rescuing me… What–

_Oh no._ My eyes widened as I remembered. _Kid Flash._

I tugged at the wristbands frantically. I tried to summon my powers, but found that I couldn't. Power inhibitors must have been built into the metal.

A sudden breeze washed over me. A red and yellow form blocked the light. In a strange mixture of horror and rage, I slowly looked up at his face. He was grinning.

"Hey, Jinx! You're up!"

I couldn't stop the stricken look of horror that passed over my features. Two years of regret, maybes, torturous memories, and anger flooded over me. My eyes narrowed.

He simply smiled. "C'mon! Is that any way to thank your savio–?"

"If I'm a prisoner here, just say so," I said coldly. All the weakness that I had encountered the day before, all the thankfulness that I had felt, washed away all too easily. My mind was finally able to grasp the conversation from earlier, but if Robin was so encouraging, what was with the restraints?

"Oh, right. Sorry." Kid Flash dashed over to a keypad on the wall. He grinned sheepishly. "Raven wanted them to keep you from tossing around too much in your sleep and reopening your wounds."

"And the power inhibitors?"

"Just happened to be built in."

His answer was too quick, too ready. The explanation had been waiting on the tip of his tongue, anticipating its use. He was lying. I knew it. Two years hadn't changed anything between us. He still lied to me. And I still saw right through it.

I watched him as he quickly punched in a 4-digit code. The wrist bands snapped open and disappeared into the bed. I rubbed my chaffed wrists.

Kid Flash sped back to my bedside. "Look, Jinx. We need to talk."

"Yes." I threw my hand out and grinned wickedly. My eyes glowed pink. "Let's talk."

…..

The living room was across the Tower and several floors up from the medical bay. The Titans could still hear the shouts and sounds as things shattered. Robin reached for the TV remote and turned up the volume.

Beast Boy winced as another enraged scream echoed through the room. He looked fearfully at Cyborg. "Shouldn't we go stop them?"

Cyborg's hands flew up defensively. "No way, man. I'm not interrupting something like that."

Starfire floated up from her seat next to Robin and asked, "Should we not go and make sure that Friend Jinx is not in the way of harm?"

"It's harm's way, Star." Robin said and simply clicked up the volume another notch to try and drown out the chaos. "And I don't think Jinx is the one who's in trouble."

The Titans tensed at a sudden interval of silence, but relaxed as something else shattered, breaking the quiet. Raven glanced up from her book. A dark aura surrounded Beast Boy's fearful kitten form and tossed him out from under her cloak. She buried her head in her book again and restrained a reflex to shudder as an explosion rocked the Tower.

She muttered, "If I were Jinx and Kid Flash had done that to me, I would be doing the exact same thing right now."

Every single Titan nodded in agreement.


	3. Hate to Love

He was gone the instant before pink sparks erupted from my palms.

I cursed and rolled onto my side. I spotted him next to the door a millisecond before a ragged bolt of pain ripped through my body. I bit my tongue. My wounds still felt raw and sharply tender. I would have to finish this quickly before I blacked out. I turned back to the task at hand.

Kid Flash frantically tried to punch in the combination for the door, but in his haste, he kept missing the right buttons.

"I don't think so!" I growled and shot a hex at him. He dodged, and the door instantly fused to its frame. The keypad melted, deformed beyond repair.

I cursed. But at least now there was no escape for him. He was on the far side of the room. He didn't want to attack me, and I knew it.

I smiled. Time to get my revenge. Two years' worth of pain and rage rose up inside of me like a solid wall, blocking out thought, conscience, and remorse. And forgiveness.

It was time to get even.

"You – are – a – _big – fat – jerk!_" I marked each word with a hurled shot of pink magic.

He dodged every single one. A scream of frustration burbled in my throat. Then a shock of pain rippled over me and left me gasping for breath. I desperately pressed a hand against my ribcage to try and stop the pulsating knives attacking my torso.

Seeing that I was momentarily disabled, Kid Flash skid to a halt beside me and winked. His customary grin was plastered on his face. He stepped back until his back touched the wall.

"I guess we'll talk later, milady. When you can beat me up with a more ready body." And with a mock bow, he began to vibrate out of the room.

"I don't think so!" I snarled and slapped my palm to the wall. A current of pink left my hand and sparked through the plaster. He yelped as he leapt through and back into the room. He rubbed his scorched arm and back, then I blinked, and he was gone.

I could still feel the ragged breezes as he dashed around the room, out of my range of vision. Then an idea sparked in my mind, and a plan began to form. I shot a bolt of magic at his blur.

As he dodged, he slowed for a moment, and I could see the red and yellow of his uniform. I twisted slightly to keep him in my sights and accidentally moved my wounded ribcage. Pain seemed to shred my body to pieces. I gasped, and I was whole again. My midsection throbbed. Blood pounded thickly through my skull. I shook my head to clear away the pain. It distracted me.

Kid Flash was frozen with worry as he watched me. He stretched out a hand to help me. The room spun.

I heard him take a step forward – or maybe back. I couldn't tell. My vision swam in front of my eyes.

"Jinx…"

I shifted again, and I couldn't bite back the groan. The pain was tearing me apart at the seams.

"Jinx!" He was at my side in an instant. I clenched my eyes closed against the pain. My hands twisted the sheets at my sides. I felt a warm hand slip into mine. My eyes flew open. Kid Flash's ungloved hand clasped mine tightly – as if he never wanted to let go. The touch – his touch – seemed to send lighting crashing down my spine. I trembled in my very core.

He knelt next to me and saw the uncertainty in my eyes.

"Jinx," he whispered.

Another wave of pain broke over me. I grit my teeth against the impending scream. My whole body felt numb compared to the blinding pain in my ribcage and over my heart.

"Jinx! I'm going to get Raven, ok?" Kid Flash stood, and I felt the warmth leaving my hand.

"No! Please!" On instinct, I pulled him back. I guess I pulled him back harder than I expected because he stumbled and tried to turn around all at once. We found ourselves face to face, inches apart. We looked at each other, too shocked to move.

His other hand found my cheek.

"Kid Flash… I…" I could barely whisper.

As if drawn by some invisible force, our lips drew closer together.

"I…"

He closed his eyes the moment before our lips met.

_Perfect._

I curled my fingers into a tight fist, and my eyes sparked pink. Two years' worth of rage and pain channeled into my hand. "I think you're a big fat jerk!"

I sat, shocked. I couldn't believe that my plan had actually worked. Kid Flash sat on the floor and rubbed his head. He moaned. I blinked away my surprise. My eyes narrowed. It was time to end this. My eyes turned a swift pink and hex magic sparked in my outstretched palm. But I couldn't release it.

I strained against myself. Arguing and battling for control. Some part of me had resurfaced and struggled to keep me from finishing him off. Finally my rage consumed me. I let the hex loose, anger fueling it – this time with more anger at myself than at him.

A split second too late.

Kid Flash blinked clearly, saw me fire the hex, and was gone. The hex crashed into the floor, ripping the tile to pieces.

I yelled in frustration. For a moment, I didn't even try to go after him. For a moment, the only one that I hated was myself.

For two whole years, I had planned this very day. The day I would avenge myself, my pain and my doubts. I would make him pay for hurting me and not even realizing what he had done. I would make him beg for mercy – make him as desperate as I had once been. I would prove, for once, that I was right.

And I had just blown that chance.

Self-loathing almost replaced my sense of hatred for him. Almost. I refocused, rage renewed.

Kid Flash leaned against the far wall, nursing his splitting headache.

"Gotcha!" I shouted. Hex magic burst from my fingertips. He dodged and sped to the other side of the room. We went back and forth several times. I bit back a scream of rage.

He didn't even try to hit me, even though we both knew that if he took the offensive, I'd be done for in an instant. That knowledge only infuriated me more. Words spilled from my lips before I could stop them.

"Hate me!" I screamed at him. He froze, finally visible for once. My words shocked him into visibility. "Attack me! _Kill me!_"

He watched me, his eyes frozen wide behind his mask.

"Show me that you hate me, so I can hate you back," I continued to yell at him. Words, unspoken and longed for for so long, formed themselves at my lips without thought. "Be anything but good, so I can know that I was right all along. Right to say that you never loved me. Right for two years of torturing myself in my mind. Just–" My voice caught as I fought off tears. "Just hate me! Like I hate you!"

Enraged at my weakness – my tears – I felt my eyes glow blindingly pink. I yelled as I loosed a huge wave of magic at him. Glass shattered as he dodged. My hex had hit the medicine cabinet that had been behind him.

I shielded my face with my arm. Glass tinkled to the floor. I removed my arm.

Kid Flash stood, silent. Still. He had stood in front of me to shield me from the flying shards. I looked up at him from my bed. I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. He turned slowly. Blood trickled down from a shallow cut on his cheek. He grimaced and smiled sadly at my shocked expression.

"I can't hate you, Jinx," he said softly. "I still love you."

_Love?_ My shock melted instantly. Rage replaced it.

"You love me? You _love_ me?" I snapped at him. "Every time you ever said that to me, you _lied_! _You lied to me!_" I shot out a wave of pink. "You never loved me. _Never!_"

He dodged my attack.

I was breathing heavily, but I smiled. He was slowing. I was able to pick out his movements.

I continued throwing hexes at his blurred form, attempting to tire him out.

"I'm so sick of you being the right one – the good one. You were always right, and I was always wrong – wrong because of my past. Wrong to hate you. Wrong to never forgive you. Wrong to never come back. Wrong to have ever loved you at all," I snarled at him.

In an instant, I found myself a foot above the bed.

Kid Flash's hand curled tighter around the fabric under my chin, hoisting me up. He held a heavy, tensed fist behind his head, ready to strike. My breath caught. He was panting – either from exertion or from my words, I could not tell. We stayed that way for a moment, neither daring to move. Neither daring to speak.

I didn't see his fist. I saw his eyes. Pure blue clouded dark. Heavy with the pain from my words. He trembled. I could see him struggling. I broke the silence.

"Hate me," I whispered. "Prove me right. If you hate me, then I'll have been right all along."

I felt tears run down my cheeks. Which had let them loose? Pain or emotion?

"Strike me, so I'll have a real reason to strike you back. Please." I closed my eyes, anticipating the red-hot pain that would blossom behind my eyelids. Nothing.

Slowly, trembling still, I felt his hand release my shirtfront and lower me gently onto the bed. I opened my eyes. He still stood over me. He slowly lowered his fist.

"Jinx." His voice, without any hint of joking or kidding or laughter, struck me speechless.

"Jinx… I'm sorry." He looked at me with perfectly solemn eyes. "I… won't."

My mind took a moment to comprehend his words. I had attacked him, threatened him, struck him, scarred his heart with my words, and still he refused…

"I'm still wrong then," I murmured aloud. Despair crested over me as his rejection set in. "If you're always right, and I'm always wrong, then I'm the bad one, still. It's just like back then in Leaf Metropolis – I got pushed away. I deserved everything you put me through."

"Jinx, no–!" He found himself inches from my face. My fingertip sparked pink, almost grazing his right temple. My other hand gripped his shoulder tightly.

"Fell for the same trick twice," I murmured. "Awfully slow still."

He looked at me. Helpless. Hopeless. Pleading.

I locked gazes with him. I wanted to watch his eyes as the pain ripped through him. My mistake. I faltered.

His eyes betrayed such sorrow, such remorse. I bit back a cry. Had my words really cut him this deeply? After everything, was he actually, truly sorry? Did he mean what he had said? Was it true? My finger trembled, uncertain.

"Just do it."

His voice shocked me again. Such grief and no laughter. This was not the same Kid Flash that I had left behind – that had left me behind – two years ago. His voice, ragged with pain, reminded me of my own before my overwhelming hurt had hardened into anger.

I could not speak. Could not move.

"Just do it," he quietly urged me again. "Make me pay the price – even if it's only a small one – for hurting you."

I felt my hand on his shoulder tighten. Then it slipped away. The magic on my fingertip fizzled out.

"No," I whispered.

Pain ripped through my body, and I twisted against it, grimacing, biting back screams, fighting it. I was at my limit. I was done. I closed my eyes and murmured, "Please… Call Raven. And tell the Titans I'm sorry for the mess."

A vanishing breeze told me that he had gone. As darkness claimed me, I tried to justify my actions.

_I didn't take him out because he _wanted_ it. He _needed_ to be punished for what he did to me. But I didn't hurt him because it would have only made him feel better. I didn't hurt him only to keep him from satisfaction and peace of mind._

_ Not to forgive him_. _And _NOT_ because I still love him._

…Or so I told myself.


	4. Their Beginning

_**Two Years Before…**_

I felt a sharp gust of wind whip my hair back across my face. It stung, forcing me to crack my eyes open. I raised my head from my knees.

The sun was lower than I remembered when I had first sat down on the rooftop. Now the sun barely grazed the horizon, turning the bay bright red and casting a long shadow behind me. I squinted into the dimming light.

It was getting late, and I was sure that my team would start looking for me soon… Well, kind of sure. Part of me wondered if they even cared enough to worry. On the other hand, even someone as thick as Billy Numerous would begin to wonder where I went all the time if I continued to disappear like this.

How could I tell my teammates that I left for hours at a time because I couldn't stand being with them? That I needed time to myself to just sit and think and not… _steal_ anything?

As I stood and reached my arms up to stretch, I couldn't help the heavy sigh that escaped my lips. It was such a burden having to go home to those idiots. I froze, mid-stretch. Something was off.

I noticed a slight pressure above my ear and brought my hand up. My hand came back with a soft, red rose.

I automatically stiffened. It was him again. A sharp breeze had awoken me… _A sharp breeze!_ I whirled around, ready to blast him.

Kid Flash leaned lazily up against one of the air conditioning ducts that jutted out of the rooftop. He grinned when he saw my expression.

"I was beginning to wonder when you'd notice," he said, and his infuriatingly charming smirk widened.

"Don't mess with me," I warned and lowered myself into a fighting stance.

"Can't a hero do a little good once in a while?" he asked innocently. He was mocking me.

My eyes flashed pink and the rose in my hand wilted instantly.

He sighed. "I guess not, then." With a deliberate slowness, he straightened and stepped forward.

I knew I had to be careful. I had to remind myself that he was still the enemy, and if he chose to fight, it would all be over in a second. Literally._ "Don't run, but put distance between yourself and a dangerous opponent,"_ was one of the first lessons that the H.I.V.E defense teacher had drilled into the students. I took a step back – and then remembered how close I had been to the roof's edge when I had fallen asleep.

Too late. My foot met air.

My arms wind-milled wildly as I tried to rebalance myself on the roof's edge, but I was already too far gone. In the moment before I fell, my eyes widened in fear, and my gaze locked with Kid Flash's. For a moment, time seemed to stop. I felt my arm turn traitor and reach out to him, pleading for help. He seemed frozen in fear too – and then he was gone.

Reality came rushing back, and I fell seven stories. I didn't have time to scream. My last thought before I braced myself for death was that Kid Flash had deserted me. He had run away. But what was I to him? One less villainess to deal with in the future.

I never touched the ground.

A blur of red and yellow swooped me up. And right before I blinked, I saw the world pass by in a blur of color and sound.

Then I blinked, and suddenly, it stopped. I glanced up at Kid Flash.

I could feel his arms cradling me against his body. The places where our bodies met felt like fire and ice all mixed up. I could feel my heart's harsh rhythm in my throat, and for a moment, I wasn't sure whether it was from my near-death experience or from Kid Flash's protective arm wrapped around my shoulders. Then the moment passed, and reality collapsed back into place.

I was a villain who had just been saved by a hero. I was a disgrace.

"Put me down," I said in steely tones. I willed my heart to stop beating so fast. I was sure that he could hear it. It was embarrassing.

"I don't know if I should," Kid Flash grinned. "You might go walking off another building."

I could decide whether I wanted to blast him to kingdom come, or – _No!_ There was no alternative.

"I said, put me down!" I snapped. My eyes sparked pink, and I used my powers to throw him to the ground. He grunted when he landed and shook his head to clear it. I back-flipped and landed on my feet in a crouch.

"Wow, you really pack a punch," he said appreciatively as he picked himself up and dusted off his uniform.

I scoffed and rolled my eyes, crossing my arms over my chest, to secretly press my hand against my heart to help slow it. "Idiot," I muttered.

For a moment, I watched in confusion as he dashed back and forth.

"Idiot?" He paused, his hand over his eyes as if he were looking for something. "I don't see your team anywhere…"

He put his hand down and shrugged. "Nope, no idiots here!" he said cheerfully.

I simply scowled. "Well if they aren't here now, they will be soon. They're probably looking for me right now."

We both jumped a bit as a nearby streetlamp flickered on with an electrical hum. Both embarrassed, we tried to cover up our jumpiness. I coughed, and he cleared his throat.

"Your team? Really?" Kid Flash lazily scratched the back of his head. "From my impression of them, I would've thought that they'd be so engrossed in video games that they wouldn't notice or not if their fearless leader came back from her evening strolls."

_Fearless leader? _Was he still mocking me? My eyes narrowed. I didn't have to deal with this.

"Whatever. I'm leaving." I whirled around and began walking down the street. "See you never!" I called back over my shoulder.

Congratulating myself on a job well done, I wasn't watching where I was going and bumped into something. I rubbed my sore nose. The obstacle was Kid Flash.

"Never as in now?" he asked, his eyes earnest.

"You!" I snapped and stepped back. "Leave me alone!"

Kid Flash was silent for a moment, and for a second I questioned whether I had demanded something of him that he– But what did it matter if I hurt his feelings? All the better.

Then he looked up, his eyes completely serious. My eyes widened. It was as if someone had wiped away all the laughter in his eyes, like a coffee ring under a damp cloth.

"I promise I'll leave you alone…" His voice too was solemn. It unnerved me a bit. "If you answer something for me."

I glanced down, unsure of how to deal with this sudden change of moods. I searched the ground for answers.

It was just a stupid question, right? Then he would have to leave me alone – on his "hero's honor"-type crud. Then there would be no one to make me question my motives or show interes– no – _pretend_ to show interest in me. There would be no one standing in my way on my rise to the top. No one to question my methods of gaining power and respect so that I could finally belong somewhere and be recognized and have a purpose in life and be more than just bad luck. If I answered his dumb question, then there would be no one to voice aloud exactly what I was feeling and make me doubt everything that I had ever lived for.

If I answered his question, he would be gone forever. A small voice in my mind cried out in protest at this.

I quickly squashed it.

I looked up and crossed my arms over my chest defiantly. "Fine."

After a moment of shocked silence at my agreement, he said quietly, "Why did you go back to them?"

"What do you mean?" I knew exactly what he meant, but I wanted to let him think that that night hadn't mattered at all to me. That I had forgotten it. It had all been insignificant to me.

On the contrary, I had dreamt about him and had had nightmares about Madame Rouge for several nights after that. The nightmares had been easy to banish. But his face had haunted me daily. His easy smile made my stomach queasy, and the roses that seemed to pop up every now and then had made it hard to concentrate on missions.

"That night. After you freed me from Rouge, you told your teammate 'Good-bye.'" Kid Flash tried to smile, but it came out only half-hearted. "Now if that's not a final farewell, I don't know what is."

"Well then, you don't know what a final farewell is," I said. My voice came out clipped and cold – but even to my ears, I could tell that it was too much so. I sounded like I was in… denial or something.

Kid Flash locked gazes with me and searched my face. I desperately tried to wipe my face blank. He blinked suddenly. "You _do_ remember!" He grinned, truly this time. "I knew it!"

"No!" I snapped vehemently.

He flashed me the same grin. "You're really easy to read, Jinx. When you're hiding something, your face becomes _too_ blank."

I simply stood there. I could do nothing else. All of my snappy wit had left me. He… could see right through me? In a blur of red and yellow, I found him leaning against me, his elbow resting on my shoulder familiarly. He smiled. "C'mon, Jinx. Don't tell me that nobody's noticed that about you?"

I froze as he leaned in and inspected my shocked expression. "Or maybe nobody's tried…" he murmured, almost mournfully. I watched as his eyes saddened.

The shock wore off. I quickly knocked his arm away and scowled at him. "So what if nobody's tried? It doesn't matter."

His eyes darkened. "Yes it does, Jinx."

I opened my mouth, then closed it. In the end, I could do nothing but scoff and jerk my head to the side, refusing to look at him. I wasn't about to fall for his stupid plot to get me to spill my guts like some helpless heroine in a bad soap opera. Who did he think I was anyways?

Who did he think _he_ was? Barging into my life. Making me look like a fool in front of my life-long idol – who was no longer my idol… But still! He also brought up a lot of questions that I had always pushed aside before. Questions about my team and my life and my motives and about how my powers could be used for more than evil and–

"Come with me."

My head snapped up. His eyes were serious again.

"What?" was the only word that I could splutter out.

"Come with me," he repeated. "Come be a Titan."

My mind swam as parts of me argued back and forth. I wanted to stay with the H.I.V.E – No. I was lying to myself again. I didn't want to stay with them. I wanted to start over. It was possible – But no! It wasn't possible. I would always be tainted. And my powers–

He broke the silence. "You say that good was never an option for you," he said, still serious. "But it isn't you that pushes that idea on yourself. – It's everyone around you. It's just you that chooses to believe them."

I stood, shocked into silence once more.

Encouraged by my lack of outright refusal, Kid Flash continued. "Jinx, I think that deep inside of you, you want to change. You want to prove everyone else wrong."

_How did he figure it all out?_ I wondered. _Everything he's said, everything he's talking about, it's always hovered at the edge of my mind, but I always pushed away those thoughts before I could solidify them and begin to doubt myself. Everything he's saying rings so true._

Kid Flash took a step forward. I didn't try to attack or run. I could only stand still and listen.

"Go for it, Jinx," he whispered. His eyes seemed to draw mine, and I found that I couldn't look away. "Be a hero. Prove everyone wrong. Struggle and win and do what's right."

He took another step. I felt my insides begin to tremble – not with fear, but with something… unfamiliar to me. I didn't know that I was crying until I felt the tear slip slowly down my cheek. Kid Flash reached out and for a moment, his gloved fingertip touched my cheek. I felt a delightful shiver trace my spine. He brushed the tear off of my cheek.

"Jinx," he continued to whisper. "At first, I know it'll be hard for you to change, but I have faith in you."

He held his hand out. Relaxed, confident, vulnerable in his invitation.

"You can do it." He smiled. "Trust me."

I could only stare at the gloved hand. He was giving me the exact same offer as that one night in the museum. The first night that I had broken his trust. He was giving me another chance. I couldn't remember the last time that anybody had so freely–

"Well?"

At his voice, I started. He was still smiling – not his usual cocky smirk, but a trusting, open smile.

"Well what?" I blinked. This all seemed so unreal still.

He grinned, and for a moment I saw his usual smile dart across his face. "Well, are you gunna blast me again? Or are you finally gunna let yourself do what you want to do?"

A moment of silence passed between us. My mind swirled. I wasn't confused. I knew what I had to do – it's just that, everything that had been pushed upon me since the first time I had used my powers – the villainess within me – refused this option with everything it had.

I struggled silently within myself for another moment.

Finally I raised my hand, my fingers spread wide – an exact imitation of that night in the museum when I had caught him off-guard and had thrown a hex bolt at him. His eyes widened.

My fingers relaxed. And I dropped my hand into his outstretched palm. I smiled slightly at him, unsure for a moment if I had made the correct decision. He smiled in return, and I knew that I had.

"Good choice, Jinx. This is just the beginning."

I felt my smile widen without my meaning it to. It felt odd to smile genuinely – not just for battle or for manipulation's sake. Just… a real smile.

His gloved hand tightened around mine. "Let's go."

I cast about me wildly. There was something that I had to do first before we left. Before I left everything I'd ever had behind me.

"Wait."

He blinked, probably scared that I had changed my mind. "What–"

I slipped my hand from his grasp and ran to the middle of the deserted street. I crouched down. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my H.I.V.E communicator. I looked at it for a long moment before setting it gently on the ground. A red-gloved hand offered me a red rose. I looked up, and Kid Flash winked.

"Maybe they'll see the rose and decide to switch sides too," he said and grinned. "It's worked before."

I scoffed. "Yeah right. They may be stupid but…"

Yeah. What the heck…

I took the rose from his fingers and lay it besides the yellow communicator on the ground. I stood slowly. After a long look, I turned to Kid Flash. Side by side, we walked down the dimly lit street.

I could feel his eyes on me, so I looked up and mimicked his mischievous grin.

"Now _that's_ a final farewell."


	5. The HIVE's Revenge

Ok! Just for clarification, because apparently my decision in the beginning not to write in two different tenses to show the difference between past and present, was a bad one. I thought that the tenses would confuse people, but that just ended up happening anyway. The confusing people part, not the tenses.

So if my explanation has already thoroughly confused you, just know this: from here on out, until further notice, we are still two years in the past. Thanks reviewers for helping me out!

-K

* * *

"Here. This is for you."

A red-gloved hand appeared in front of me. It cradled something round and flat and yellow. I stared at it stupidly for a moment. My mind refused to process anything.

"Well, are you going to take it?" Kid Flash waved it in my face. I blinked. My shock melted away. I turned and cast a wary eye over him.

He was mimicking my sitting position. Knees tucked up under the chin. Arms crossed over knees. Chin cradled in arms. It only took a glance into his eyes for me to realize that this was for real. It wasn't a prank or a joke or a dream. This was for real. Desperately trying to steady my shaking hand, I leaned forward.

Then, unintentionally, my fingers curled back. Did I really deserve this after everything I'd done? Did they really trust me this easily? Wasn't this all _too_ easy?

"Go on. Take it."

I glanced up at Kid Flash. He was smiling. I smiled and turned back to the Titans communicator in his palm. I reached out and took it.

Kid Flash smiled. He watched me as I held it reverently, almost delicately – as if I was afraid that it would explo–

A sudden flash of blinding light. An arc of electricity in the palm of my hand. A plume of black smoke. A loud hissing _sizzle._ Sparks frazzled through the air. I simply sat there, stunned. The explosions of nearby objects had always been normal for me. But this was different. I hadn't used my powers at all.

My shock quickly liquefied, and I was on my feet in an instant, eyes blazing pink. I crushed what remained of my communicator with a burst of hexes. I whirled on Kid Flash.

"What kind of a jo…ke…" My angry retort died in my throat.

Kid Flash had remained sitting. One arm had unfurled from around his legs. In his hand, I could see his own Titans' communicator. Smoke wafted up into the air and a stray spark fizzled out in the circuits. He frowned at the yellow shards and fried circuitry in his hand. Then he looked up at me. I could feel my heart start to beat faster. His expression spoke volumes. Something was terribly wrong.

More serious than I had ever seen him before, he tipped his hand over and let what remained of his communicator spill out onto the roof. He stood. Without looking down, he stepped on the sad, little cylinder and ground out the remains with his boot. My breath caught in some horrible way. I felt like I was being strangled and bound all at the same time. Could it be–?

"The Brotherhood of Evil." Kid Flash seconded my guess. He looked up at me and locked my gaze with his. "They have Robin."

"No–"

"He's the only one who can disable the communications network," Kid Flash said and frowned again. "Either he's a captive, or else the Brotherhood has forced him into a really tight spot."

"What will we do?" I asked, trying to stay my breathlessness.

"You'll get zapped here like a couple of pests."

_That voice!_ I whirled around. My former teammate hovered in mid-air on his jetpack.

"Gizmo!" I tightened my hands into fists, and I could feel the comfortable warmth as my eyes glowed a pink warning. "What are you doing here?"

Gizmo cackled and brought his handheld control forward. I tensed in anticipation. He poised a finger over a button. "Taking you out!" he sang. "Mammoth, now!"

I knew enough to cartwheel off to the side. Mammoth's surprise attacks always came through a wall, and since there were no walls on the roof to hide his stupid bulk, he had to be coming through the floor. Concrete erupted inches from my toes, but I got away in time. I watched Mammoth's giant hands rise up, and grasp the edge of his hole as he hauled himself up onto the roof.

I heard the wind whip sharply behind me, and I didn't turn to look. Kid Flash had dodged also, and now stood ready at my back.

"Is this part of the Brotherhood's plan? Take out all of the Titans?" he asked as he stepped up to my side.

"Yeah. Maybe you crud-munchers aren't as stupid as I thought," Gizmo taunted. Then he turned to me. "And Madame Rouge gave us the honor of getting to get rid of you. You stinkin' no-good traitor."

I felt my heart jump into my throat, but I wiped my face blank. I wouldn't let it show that my disloyalty still hurt me.

"At least you guys are the H.I.V.E _Five_ now." Kid Flash laughed beside me. So he was hiding his worry, too? I smiled.

"Yeah. At least you were good for _something_, Jinx," threw back Gizmo.

"Shut up, you loser."

I blinked. The words had flown from my lips before I could stop them. I saw Gizmo smirk. He opened his mouth to retort with some smug reply.

"Enough talk. Let's crush 'em," cut in Mammoth in a low growl.

"Fine," Gizmo pouted. "See-More!"

The eyeball came out of nowhere and hit Kid Flash like a cannon-shot. The impact caught him in the stomach and launched him off the roof.

"No!" I spun on my heel and raced for the edge of the building. "Kid Fla–"

Darkness enveloped me.

Then daylight erupted, and I turned to face Kyd Wykkyd. We were on the sidewalk beneath the building. People stopped to stare at us. I didn't care. I ran for the building. Kid Flash's yellow and red reflected off the building's glass windows as he fell twenty stories.

"No!" I screamed.

Then at the last moment, a tornado of wind burst from his falling form, slowing his descent. I watched as he landed on his feet, hands poised on hips, heroically. He grinned at me.

I rolled my eyes and turned back to Kyd. "Show-off," I muttered.

"_Rrrawwhhhh_!"

I rolled to the side and performed two back handsprings. Mammoth landed from his two-hundred-foot drop, and the shockwave shattered a large crater into the street's asphalt. His foot had been aimed at my head.

I couldn't help the grin that twitched at the corners of my mouth. My battle smirk was coming out. I had learned long ago to wear it to cover my fear during fights. And now I was afraid. My old team was after me. And they were out for blood.

I faced Mammoth and Kyd. Behind them, I could see Gizmo and Billy Numerous backing Kid Flash into a corner. I narrowed my eyes and felt my grin widen. "So boys, have any fun without me?"

"Lots, actually."

I glanced up. See-More stood astride the convenience store off to the side.

"About time you joined us," I quipped. "Come down and fight me like the loser you are."

He looked at me coldly. "Not everything is about you, Jinx."

I nearly dropped my guard. Since when was See-More so distant and uncaring? He stared at me for a moment with his unblinking eye. Then he smirked. My body automatically dropped its center of gravity into a fighting stance. See-More turned away from me and faced Kid Flash, who was also watching the H.I.V.E member suspiciously.

"I'll show you, Jinx," See-More called out. "I'll show you that you chose the wrong side."

He leapt down onto the street and headed towards Kid Flash. I watched him, confused. Kid Flash decided that his number of enemies was getting out of hand, and he decided to act.

The wind whipped sharply as Kid Flash became a red and yellow blur. In an instant, the Billies that had surrounded him were simply a groaning pile of red. Kid Flash dodged three of Gizmo's missiles and began circling the tiny genius, faster and faster, until Gizmo was caught up in a spiraling whirlwind.

Kid Flash screeched to a halt, and Gizmo, ensnared by centrifugal force, spun and smashed into a nearby light pole. Kid Flash turned to face his final opponent. See-More simply raised his hand to the dial on the side of his head.

"Don't bother. I know all your moves," Kid Flash said with a mock-pitying shake of his head.

See-More's leer didn't waver. My stomach began to knot up. Something was wrong.

"Well, then," See-More responded casually. "It's a good thing I learned some new ones." He flipped the dial and blue sparks danced in his new pupil.

My eyes widened. _No! A level four–_

"Run away!" I screamed. I sprinted for them.

Too late. See-More fired and, before Kid Flash could take his first step, he was ensnared in the containment field.

I stood, horribly frozen. I could only watch helplessly as bright blue sparks arced over Kid Flash's body – as the painful, smothering blanket of electricity forced him to his knees. As he fought it and collapsed, his head to the ground, desperately trying to fight the burning pain. I could see his grimace.

"_No!_" My hand shot out, and wave after wave of pink smashed into See-More. With a grunt, his body flipped to the side. The Level 4 Containment Field didn't waver.

I ran forward. Suddenly Mammoth and Kyd Wykkyd were between me and Kid Flash. My eyes glowed pink.

"Whoa there, lover-girl," Mammoth said and turned to Kyd so they could snicker about it.

I glanced behind them. Kid was still suffering. "I don't have time for you idiots," I growled and threw hexes at them with a swipe of my arms.

Kyd disappeared in a swirl of darkness. My other hex caught Mammoth in the chest and threw him back.

Mammoth flew across the street and hit a parked bus, shattering all the windows on impact. Someone screamed.

That's when I first noticed the people. Several were frozen to the sidewalk. They had watched the battle with increasing confusion. I could think of what it looked like to them. H.I.V.E member pitted against H.I.V.E member. No loyalty among villains.

A flash of black darted towards me. I whirled out of the way as Kyd's kick grazed my hair. I raised my arm in a flourish, about to blast him with a string of attacks – but then I noticed how he had placed himself between me and the people. If I attacked, he would simply teleport out, and I would hurt the innocent bystanders.

I lowered my arm and locked my pink gaze with his fiery red one.

Then I heard the broken screech of metal. I whipped around. Mammoth was up and hoisting a bus over his head. I turned. The crowd was frozen in fear on the sidewalk.

Another flicker of black. I blocked Kyd's strike and defended against a kick teleported behind me. His hand came down heavily and I twirled to the side. The crowd was behind me now and Kyd with Mammoth were at my front.

I could hear the sharp grind of metal as Mammoth finished lifting the bus. I blocked one of Kyd's punches with my forearm. "Run!" I screamed over my shoulder. The people stared at me stupidly, frozen in shock.

Kyd took my opportunistic distraction to kick me in the stomach. Pain exploded in my gut as I staggered back. Then I heard a deep grunt.

Mammoth had hurled the bus.

I swear I saw the smirk in Kyd's glowing red eyes the instant before he teleported out. In the two seconds before the bus hit, I weighed my options.

For the millionth time in my life, I wished that I had some power that could protect. Some power to shield. Some power besides bad luck. I knew that even if I hit the bus with a hex, the leftover fragments would still break apart into a deadly rain, killing me and the people behind me.

No, my only option now would sacrifice me, but what else could I do? I was a good guy now. And wasn't that the whole point – fighting for the safety of the people?

With that in mind, I had no other choice.

I leapt forward into the direct trajectory of the bus – exactly where the two-ton mass of steel and machinery would land. The last moment before it struck, I brought my hands up. I didn't have time to hesitate.

I felt my eyes blaze pink. Pink waves cascaded from my palms, striking the bus.

Metal tore. Glass shattered. Cushions and tires shredded.

Still, more. I needed more.

I poured out more of my hexes. Streams, waves, then walls. But still I needed more.

The bus was mere chunks of scrap metal and broken glass and melted rubber now, but still, the pieces were too large. They could still kill if they fell, and the force of my hexes was the only thing keeping them airborne.

I couldn't give up now. I needed more than I had ever given before.

I closed my eyes against the fatigue creeping up my neck. I tried to block out my shortness of breath, and the pain. The pain was worsening. In my chest, in my head, in my hands and fingertips. I was tired, but I couldn't stop. I felt my teeth clench on their own and set against the pain spreading over me.

The waves of energy were weakening. I couldn't help it. I was weakening. If I continued like this, then I would–

A bolt of whiteness shot through the black, and my eyes flew open. There was pain everywhere, but in my stomach most of all. Then I noticed I was on the ground.

Harmless pieces of debris and metal rained down on me.

I struggled up, my hand to my head. At least I wasn't dead like I thought I would be. And I had stopped before my powers could break apart the molecules of the bus and create a nuclear reaction. But something had stopped me…

A white and green blur came at me from my blind spot. I hit the ground with a grunt. My arms were pinned above me, and a dark shadow hovered over my face. I dared to look up. See-More had me pinned to the ground, his body over mine, and I could do nothing to get him off. My power was drained. My strength was gone. And I was helpless.

I scowled at him.

He glared back. "You're weak."

"What–?"

"The Jinx I remember wouldn't have tried to kill herself to save all those idiots," he said. I tried to squirm away, but I couldn't knock him off. "Jinx wouldn't have gone over to _their_ side."

I could stand it no longer. "Then you didn't know me very well, See-More," I snapped.

See-More searched my face. For a second, I thought that he was going to use his X-Ray vision on me or something.

"You aren't the same Jinx I know," he said finally.

I responded immediately. I had had nightmares of this day for weeks. Everything today had been unexpected, except for this.

I looked him directly in the eye. "The Jinx you used to 'know,' is gone. And she's never coming back," I said, proud that my voice hadn't shaken as I had feared it would.

His eye narrowed immediately. "Well then," he said as he kept me down with one hand and reached up to turn the dial on his head. "I'll just get rid of the guy who caused all this. He's the one who stole that Jinx away forever."

He flipped the dial, and his eye crackled with blue. He pressed a button, and I caught a glimpse of the new technology built into his eye. A smaller dial was built in, and he began to slowly turn it.

A scream echoed through the streets.

"Kid Flash!" I cried. I began fighting anew. He was hurting! He was going to die!

See-More laughed. I stopped struggling. I looked up at him.

"Are the people gone?" I asked. He stopped laughing and looked down at me, puzzled.

"Yeah, why?"

"Good," I growled. My eyes flickered pink, then held the color steadily. My powers were back. "There's nothing to get in my way this time."

He didn't have time to respond. I was mad enough that I didn't have to motion to use my powers. My eyes warmed and pulsed pink, and my fury carried the hex. Pink erupted behind See-More's eye in his circuitry. He screamed and his hands flew to press against it – to try and stop the entropy from eating away at his mechanical nerves.

My hands were free. I grabbed him by the uniform front and flip-kicked him in the gut, up over my head and into the brick wall behind the sidewalk. I heard the satisfying crunch as his body made contact with the brick and mortar.

My kick's momentum brought me up into a crouch, and my body cried out in agony. I ignored it. For years I had survived as a H.I.V.E student by putting mind over matter. The remaining H.I.V.E Five were assembled in front of me.

They stared at me. I was probably bloody and bruised. My trademark smirk didn't come out. I was too angry.

I let my hands rise, palms open, facing them. I gazed at them coolly.

Billy Numerous decided that I didn't look so tough. He and five of his clones stepped forward. "C'mon. We can take 'er!" they crowed. They sprinted forward, dividing as they came.

Ten, then twenty, then forty.

I simply waited until they were close enough. With a quick, calculated turn, I let loose two waves of hexes – one on either side of me. The Billies yelled as the impact threw them back. They crashed to the floor, melding back together into three.

But I didn't stop there. Two more flicks of my arms, and the street beneath the rest of the H.I.V.E Five ruptured, crumbling and quaking.

"Hey! Cut it out!" Gizmo screeched.

Mammoth shouted and tried to regain his balance.

I didn't give him time. I leapt into the air, and let gravity drive me down into the ground. My hexes smashed into the asphalt, shattering the street, and creating a thick layer of dust. Before the blanket of dust reached my former team, I saw my waves of hexes knock them back.

A giant trench lay before me. The dust began to settle. All was quiet.

I suddenly realized how tired I was. And I let my body drop.

A swift gust of wind. An arm around my back. Someone had caught me.

I blinked and looked up.

"Kid Flash…" I whispered. He looked so tired. But he was alive.

He looked down at me and smiled. He hugged me tightly to his chest.

We heard a scraping noise behind us and turned to look.

I wasn't surprised to see Kyd Wykkyd standing there. But I was surprised to see him standing with See-More thrown over his shoulder.

I gazed at Kyd evenly. Kid Flash made no move to stop them. He probably knew as well as I did that both sides were spent.

Kyd searched my eyes. I nodded to him. And I could have sworn that I saw the slightest quirk at the corner of his mouth when he teleported away.

"Crud!" Gizmo shrieked. "Let's blow this joint."

I turned, and from the other side of the trench, I watched as my former team beat a hasty retreat. I heard Billy shout something about not being the one to tell that scary lady they failed. Gizmo screeched back about her not needing to know.

Kid Flash helped me up, and looped my arm over his shoulder. We both panted from exertion, and he eyed my injuries. I blinked at him. My brain seemed too slow then. Had my hexes deactivated the containment field?

"But how–?"

He shrugged and grinned down at me. "A little bad luck on their part."

As he helped me back to the empty Tower, we talked about our attack strategy. How we would find the Brotherhood's base, and how we could help the other Titans who probably had had to face a team of villains like we had.

I suddenly remembered wondering earlier if getting my communicator was as easy as it had seemed. It wasn't.

Besides, my communicator would have to wait.

Kid Flash and I – we had more important things to worry about now.


	6. Leaf Metropolis

I just realized that I had this sitting in my Documents folder and I had already completed it. xD

Bravo me.

I'm dying. School should be illegal. It's fatality rate is quite high.

Disclaimer: Yeah. It's not mine.

-K

* * *

"Leaf Metropolis? But that's halfway across the country!" I felt the excitement and anger mingle inside of me, begging to be released through my powers. In short, something was going to blow up. And soon.

Much to my annoyance, I found Kid Flash's arm encircling my shoulder. He leaned against me and crossed one leg behind the other. The picture of ease.

"C'mon, Jinx. Live a little." He grinned behind his mask. I felt something in me falter. Maybe a move would be for the best?

Outwardly, I scowled at him. "Yeah, yeah. If we all lived like you, the world would be a much more reckless place." With a single, fluid motion, I ducked under his arm and kicked his legs out from under him. For a moment, I thought that he was going to lose his balance, and I was stupid enough to smirk.

Then in a red blur and a rush of wind, he righted himself by running to the other side of the room. He poised his hands in fists on his waist, posing for my bruised ego.

I huffed an annoyed sigh while he simply laughed. I crossed my arms over my chest and tried to stay my pout.

"You should've told me before you went and signed us up for something this big."

"Oh, c'mon! It isn't that–"

"Founding a new Titans' Tower? I think that's pretty huge."

He was beside me in an instant. "Jinx, we're _teenagers_! Impulsive and reckless – that's kind of our thing." He grinned. I whirled around before he could catch the smile twitching at my lips.

"You're an idiot," I tossed over my shoulder in my best "mad" voice.

It's true. I was angry at him for signing me up without my consent – but around him, I could never stay mad for long. Ironically, that knowledge was infuriating.

"Aw, don't be such a party-pooper." Kid Flash had somehow looped his arm over my shoulder again. He squeezed me tightly.

I was silent. In my mind, doubts and hopes battled for my attention. The weights of the move's pros and cons became nearly overwhelming.

Jump City had always been my home, but here I could never quite shake my past. Here I still had run-ins with the H.I.V.E Five. Here, in the eyes of the people, I would forever be a villainess – no matter how many good deeds I did. But in Leaf Metropolis…

"In Leaf, you get a new beginning," Kid Flash whispered.

My heart skipped a beat. I could feel his breath, warm and comforting, on my neck. I fought the tingles numbing my fingertips and toes._ Are you sure your power isn't mind reading?_ I wanted to whisper back.

"It's a fresh start for you. That's why when Robin brought it up last night, I went for it," he continued, still in a teasing murmur.

_He'd do all this for me?_ I tried to understand the depth of his statement – but I couldn't. His mouth inching closer to mine was a tad bit distracting. I did the first thing that came to mind. A pink spark erupted from my fingertip into his shoulder.

"_Yeowch!_" Kid Flash leapt back, rubbing his upper arm. He glanced up and caught my grin. He couldn't help but smile back. "Way to ruin the moment," he laughed.

"You were too close," I said loudly in an attempt to cover up my noisy heart.

He sighed jokingly, as if his feelings were truly hurt. "Fine, fine."

I looked off to the side and caught sight of my reflection in the window overlooking the bay. I walked over and looked down. I tried picturing skyscrapers and traffic instead of waves and endless ocean. I sighed without meaning to. In the window's reflection, I saw Kid Flash stroll leisurely up next to me.

"What if I make a mistake?" I murmured. I didn't look up.

"You won't," he replied immediately. I didn't have to look to know that his eyes held the same fire and faith as they always had whenever we talked about my past and future. I only wished that I could share his confidence in me.

Sometimes, _I_ didn't even trust me. I didn't understand how he possibly could. I put a hesitant hand to the cold glass. I splayed my fingers out, trying to absorb the coolness. The solidity. The strength.

"You already know the other three on the team, but… What if they don't like me?" There was a high chance that they wouldn't. Ex-Villainess. Ex-H.I.V.E student. Traitor. There wasn't much to like.

I looked down.

On the glass, I felt something touch me. I glanced up. Kid Flash's gloved hand covered mine on the window. He pressed comfortingly against the back of my hand. Warmth flooded through me.

I dared to look at him. Would he see the uncertainty in my eyes? Would he see what I've been dreading all along? Would he see my greatest fear – that I would fail and fall and become what I once had been?

A small, easy smile graced his lips and sparkled in his eyes. It was the same smile that he had used in the museum when he asked me to join him. It was the same smile that he used the night when I had switched sides. It was the smile that eased my heart and reassured me of the goodness in the world.

From somewhere far away, I felt his hand slide from my hand to my wrist and up my arm. His other hand had somehow pulled me close to him. He wrapped both his arms around my shoulders and held me tightly. My head tucked under his chin perfectly. I couldn't fight back.

I didn't want to.

"Don't worry," he murmured into my hair. "You'll be fine."

...

"So these are your friends, huh?" I watched in horror as the other three male Titans gorged themselves on pizza and soda. Tables upturned and couches flew in their crazed feeding frenzy. Herald, Hot Spot, and Jericho. All guys? Why couldn't we have another girl on the team?

Kid Flash winced. "Yeah, they can be slobs sometimes, but hey – beggars can't be choosers."

I rolled my eyes and grumbled, "You better not be saying stuff like that about _me_ behind my back."

Kid Flash laughed. "You can never be too sure. I'm a tricky one," he said and winked.

I shook my head. "How I let myself get dragged here by an idiot like you, I'll never understand," I moaned.

"It must've been my irresistible charm," he touched his hand to his chest dramatically and flashed me his most charming smile.

I scoffed. "Yeah, that's it."

"I'm sure it is!" He laughed and threw his arm over my shoulder. I tried to shrug him off, but he was persistent. I was preparing to zap him with a hex when he spoke again.

"That's probably how I got you to agree to lunch with me tomorrow."

Wait. What? The hex fizzled out on my fingertips. I swear I felt the pink leave my eyes and rush to my cheeks. I blinked back my surprise and tried to steady my heartbeat.

"W-what…? Lunch… Like…a date?" I asked. My voice came out shrill and uneven. I tried to will the blush away from my cheeks. What was wrong with me? I was acting like an idiot. Hadn't I been asked out before? And what the heck was wrong with my heart? It was beating too fast.

I glanced up. Kid Flash was rubbing the back of his neck. If I didn't know him better, I would've said that he was embarrassed. Was that a blush on his cheeks? Or a trick of the light reflecting off of his red mask? He smiled – _sheepishly_? Oh, this was too good a chance to waste...

"Yeah. Kinda like a date," he said and laughed. I could detect the slightest hint of nervousness at the edges of his voice. I grinned, and decided to press the advantage. It wasn't every day that I got to see the suave Kid Flash so flustered. And besides, I wanted to draw attention away from my own embarrassment.

I casually ducked out from under his arm and turned my back to him. "Oh, I don't know…" I trailed off, pausing to think.

Behind me, I swore that I heard him choke.

I grinned, safely hidden. "Don't we have our first training session tomorrow with the rest of the Titans?" I asked, worried.

"Yeah, but–"

"It wouldn't be fair if their _fearless_ leader took part of the day off to treat the team's only girl to lunch." I strolled over to one of the monitors and rested a hand lightly on the control panel. I turned and smiled innocently.

Then I caught his gaze, and I could tell that my joking had gone far enough. For the briefest of moments, I saw a flicker of uncertainty in his eyes. And then it was gone. He had wiped his expression clean.

My smile slid off my face. I reached a hand out. "Kid Flash, I was just–"

A red alert blared through the new Titans' Tower. I jerked my hand back, startled. A red blur rushed past me to the monitor, leaving me alone.

Off to the side, the other Titans became all business. They ran to Kid Flash in front of the giant computer monitor. I followed them and gazed up at the screen. Kid Flash pressed a few buttons on the console and brought up the distress call.

"Bank robbery on 4th Street," he reported and turned back to us. "This is our first mission in Leaf Metropolis. I want to make a good impression on the people. Remember to keep civilian safety first. Try not to destroy public property unless absolutely necessary, and above all, remember that you are a Teen Titan."

He turned to each of us in turn, and looked the three others square in the eye. But when he came to me, his gaze seemed to rest momentarily on my face and then slide away. I frowned. The hesitation had only been there for a moment. Had it all been my imagination?

It had to be…

Kid Flash blinked and continued. "Remember that you are a Teen Titan. So act like one," he ended quickly.

I shook away the awkwardness from before and nodded along with the rest. He would be a good leader, I could tell. I bit back my smile. It was so different seeing him serious for a change. I took a deep breath as we ran out of the TV room. Kid Flash's words echoed in my mind.

I was a Titan now. I would be taking down those who broke the law, not helping them. I would not waver. I would stay good and do what was _right_.

We left the Tower via Herald's horn. My final thoughts were not to reassure myself of my hero-status. They were of the last look that Kid Flash had sent my way. The avoidance, even if it was only in my mind, made me uneasy.

I would have to tell him that I had just been kidding about the date. In actuality, I really, really wanted to go with him tomorrow.

I just didn't have the guts to say it.


	7. Miss Linda Park

Long time no see! :D

Sorry for the delay. I was working on another fanfic that I had been putting off. It's hard adding romantic tension when one of the characters is dead... xP hahaha

But here we are! Seriously, this is like my 3rd time writing this scene out... About a year ago, I wrote it out in a notebook - lost the notebook. Rewrote it on my old computer - which crashed shortly thereafter.

And now I just mustered the strained will to rewrite it again. grawr. You think that it'd get easier to write, but it doesn't...

Let's see how I did.

-K

Disclaimer: I think it's very clear by now that I don't own Teen Titans.

* * *

Kid Flash tightened the rope around the unconscious bank robbers, just for good measure. He dusted off his gloved hands and walked back to the rest of us waiting at the bank's double doors.

We were cowering in fear.

Outside we could hear the sea of press – assured that the robbers and their annoying bullets were contained – clamoring for a quote or a picture of Leaf's newest heroes. My knuckles were white. I clenched my hands even tighter and felt my battle smirk twitching at the corners of my mouth. Just another enemy to face…

I felt a slight pressure on my shoulder. I looked up at Kid Flash. He didn't meet my gaze, but his hand squeezed slightly to reassure me before he walked past.

I frowned. I would have to tell him soon that I had been joking earlier about the date. I would have then, but the rest of the team was there…

Hot Spot, Herald, Jericho, and I watched as Kid Flash walked forward calmly and pressed his hands to the bank's heavy double doors. I thought I heard him sigh for a moment before he gathered the strength and pushed the doors open wide.

The light from outside and the immediate flashing of cameras and stage lights burst forth from the doors, blinding us all. I squinted and watched as first Kid Flash, then Hot Spot and Herald melded into the light.

My foot drew back on its own. I couldn't do it. I had always been afraid of this part of hero work. Publicity. My future as a hero was in the hands of these dozens of hungry reporters waiting for me just outside. One bad column – one mention of my past as a villainess – and I was done before I had began. No one would accept me… I would fail as a hero, just like I had always predicted…

A small hand clasped mine. I glanced down. "Jericho?"

His green eyes bored deep into mine. I felt as if he could see right through me – straight through to my soul and my hopes and fears.

Then he smiled. My real smile came out for just a moment. For that moment, I was at peace and reassured. Maybe – just maybe – I could do this.

That's when Jericho pulled me outside.

…...

My hand shot up to deflect the piercing light. I squinted and blinked away the black dots hovering in my vision. Blindness in light. What torture… A couple more blinks, and my eyes adjusted to the harsh lights of the flashing camera bulbs and heady stage lights for the news crews.

Then I noticed that Jericho was gone. My hand was empty. I cast about for a moment, trying to find him. Then I caught sight of him farther down the bank's stairs. A wave of reporters had rushed forward to claim him. I almost laughed.

Jericho couldn't talk.

_No interview for you jackals!_ I smirked inwardly.

I saw Herald and Hot Spot entangled in similar crowds. Using my best H.I.V.E Academy sneaking abilities, I huddled in what little shadow the bank had to offer and tried to find Kid Flash in the smothering crowd.

He was chatting with a group of reporters. Or rather, one in particular. The journalist was talking more than she was taking notes. And she was flirting more than she was talking.

She smiled prettily at him. And he smiled back.

I watched her lush, perfect lips pursing together, then drawing apart, forming words and smothering praises on Kid Flash. She flicked a tress of her thick, black hair over one shoulder.

Before I knew what was happening, I could feel my feet moving and could tell that my eyes were glowing pink. All hesitance gone, I stalked forward. I heard a collective gasp from the crowd, and suddenly the pressing sea pushed back. I felt my arm swat away one photographer that moved too slowly.

I strode forward, and I felt the grand marble stairs under my feet buckle and break with each step. I could tell that my enraged powers were starting to slip from my control. But I could care little. Then I felt a restraining hand tugging at my shoulder. I whirled around, eyes ablaze.

Herald cringed, but shook his head no. I could picture myself blasting him between the eyes for interfering, but Kid Flash's words drifted through my mind.

_Make a good impression on the people._

And blasting that reporter – no matter how flirtatious and loose – would definitely not make a good impression on the public. Especially with the rest of Leaf Metropolis's press here. Finally, Kid Flash seemed to notice my death-glare burning a hole in the girl's head. He looked over at me, and I willed the murderous glow in my eyes to fade. He dashed over to me and tipped his head to the side.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"Wrong?" I blinked back the rest of my murderous intent but couldn't quite ditch my glare. "Nothing's wrong. Who said anything was wrong?"

Kid Flash frowned slightly and exchanged a look with Herald. "Are you sure? Your eyes–"

"Nothing's wrong," I growled again. I fixed my still-burning gaze on a building off to the right. Not at the girl reporter. Nope. Not her. "Some stupid reporter asked me to demonstrate my powers."

Kid Flash had told me that lying was bad and should be left behind with villainy. However, I wasn't lying. Not quite. The reporter _had_ requested that I use my powers. She had inadvertently submitted a death wish.

Kid Flash shrugged slightly at Herald, who turned away to fetch Jericho and Hot Spot. Then Kid Flash wrapped a comforting arm around my shoulder. At first, I thought that he was going to tell us to head back to the Tower, but then he turned to me and said, "Jinx, there's someone I'd like for you to meet."

Before I could protest, he whisked me away, and before I could gather my thoughts, I found myself standing face to face with the flirtatious girl reporter. Kid Flash patted my shoulder like I was an old friend – or something. "This is Jinx."

I could feel the magic sparking at my fingertips. Where was the comforting arm around my shoulder now? Or the gentle hug? "_This is Jinx._" Oh brilliant.

_Stop it!_ I scolded myself. _This is just how he treats you in public. And she means nothing. Stop being such a desperate, jealous idiot!_

Very much unaware of my internal beating, Kid Flash continued with the introductions. "Jinx, this is Linda Park. She's the editor-in-chief at Leaf Metropolis High's newspaper – _The Leaflet_."

I could tell by Kid Flash's tone that he wanted me to shake hands with her. So she was an important person after all… Linda smiled – nothing less than dazzling – and held out her hand.

I took a deep breath to calm my powers, and the pink sparks dancing so temptingly across my palms stopped. I plastered on what I hoped was a winning smile and took Linda's hand. I shook it.

"Hi. I'm Jinx."

"I'm Linda." She said it with such a lofty air that I struggled to maintain my friendly mask._ Well, do you want me to kiss your hand? Should I curtsy or grovel first, Your Royal Highness?_

"Nice…to meet you," I said through almost-clenched teeth.

"You too!" Linda exclaimed and the instant before she dropped it, my hand felt a pang of pain – as if she had squeezed with all of her might before retreating. And I could have sworn that I caught her wiping her hand on the back of her jeans. She smiled again, but the slightest of twinges tugged her eyebrows down in the middle. A frown? "I've heard _so_ much about _you_, Jinx…"

I froze as she let that hang. The way she said it… It sounded like she had been saying, "_I've heard so much about what you used to be…"_ And her tone implied anticipation.

_So she's anticipating me screwing up and turning back into a villainess?_ My mask broke, and my battle smirk was back.

Silence hung between us. Linda cleared her throat and turned back to Kid Flash. "So Kid–"

_Kid? I don't even get to call him Kid…Not that I'd ever tried…_

"– about the interview. I think it'd be a great chance for you to get some good publicity for the new Titans… and you."

_Interview?_

Kid Flash just grinned, completely blocking out my questioning glares. "Sure thing, Linda. Just name the time and place."

"Great!" Linda exclaimed. "How does… tomorrow over lunch sound?"

_Oh crap! _My eyes grew wide, and so did Kid Flash's. I should have clarified with him earlier about the date. No time for regret, though. I opened my mouth to quickly clear up what I knew was coming. But as always, Kid Flash was faster.

"Sure thing, Linda. Jinx, you in?"

I whipped my head up to stare at him, too shocked for anger or words. Kid Flash didn't spare me a glance. But Linda sputtered for a moment, trying to protest. She quickly recovered.

"Yeah, Jinx," she managed to squeeze out. "How'd you like to hang out tomorrow?"

_How'd you like me to hex your luscious black hair into a bad hair CENTURY?_ My anger flooded back. I glared at Kid Flash's unwavering face. "Sorry, but I've got stuff to do."

Kid Flash didn't look at me as he coolly replied, "Oh don't worry about training – or _lunch_ for that matter–"

My jaw dropped at his implication.

"–you'll be there, Jinx."

My lips curled into a snarl. _Like hell I will!_

Linda was just as happy as I was. Luckily, she hid her anger better. "Alright," she said, tight-lipped. "I'll be at the Tower around 12."

"The Tower?" I snapped. "That's a major breech in security. We don't allow civilians in–"

" –Except this once," cut in Kid Flash.

"Thanks, Kid!" Linda noted the pink glow lurking very near to the surface in my eyes and decided to retreat. "Well, see you tomorrow then!" she called and turned to dash away through the thinning crowd.

The instant she was gone, I whirled on Kid Flash. "_What. Were. You. Thinking?_"

He grabbed my wrist in an iron-like grip. Again, he wouldn't look at me. "You're coming with me." His voice left no room for argument.

But I was too angry to care. "Yeah right," I snapped back. I struggled against his hold. His hand didn't waver – it actually tightened. I grimaced as pain shot through my arm. I didn't care that the reporters were staring, and the photographers were raising their cameras. I drew my fist back, laden with pink.

Then we were gone – away, whizzing through the city. Dodging cars and people and birds all in milliseconds. The world became a blur – then it stopped. We were back in the Tower.

He was holding me by my shoulders now. My fist was still raised. Once I took in my surroundings, I didn't hesitate and swung my fist forward. He quickly let me go and dodged. I heard him screech to a stop behind me. I pivoted on the balls of my feet, whirling abruptly to face him.

But he glared at me – the first eye contact since this morning when I had playfully turned down his lunch date. His anger only served to elevate mine. _What did he have to be angry about?_

"Jinx." His voice came out hard and commanding. "Stop it."

"Stop what?" I snarled. It came out ugly. I almost winced at how mean-spirited I sounded. But I was too angry to stop. "Stop caring that you just blew me off for that…_girl_?"

Kid Flash's arms were crossed over his chest. His brow darkened under his mask. "I didn't blow you off. How could I when you rejected me?"

I grimaced inside and tried to hide it outwardly, but my facial muscles were too far-gone in emotion. "I was _joking_! I was going to say yes!"

His eyes widened. For a second, I thought that he was going to apologize. Then his eyes swiftly narrowed.

"Well, you should've said something!" he retorted. His voice was rising. It reminded me why I was furious.

"I was _going to_, but you were just too eager to accept _Miss Park's_ date!" I yelled back. My fists clenched at my sides, shuddering in my anger.

"You had just rejected me, the press meeting was a disaster until she showed up, and she's an old friend, ok? What was I supposed to do?" Kid Flash took an angry step forward.

I caught his glare. That was my mistake, because I saw the hurt and insecurities that he was trying so hard to cover up. I faltered in my anger. I was the one to cause him so much pain… Did that make me in the wrong? After all my efforts and all his faith, was I still such a bad person? I had hurt the one person who had believed in me… And now…

The guilt and pain were too much. I hid.

"Well, I'm glad you think so much of her!" I snapped at him. My voice shook a little. Tears welled in my eyes. But I hid. "Because you can have her!"

I whirled around and stormed to the door.

He called out behind me. "Jinx!"

The door _whoosh_ed open, and three very scared, possibly eaves-dropping Titans stared at me. I continued to storm towards them.

"Move!" I barked. My hand swung up, pink sparking in my palm and eyes pulsating dangerously. They scurried out of my way. Jericho almost reached out to catch the edge of my sleeve, but Herald smartly intervened and dragged Jericho into the Common Room, behind the safety of the couch along with Hot Spot.

I turned in the doorframe, facing the room and willing my tears back one last time. "You'll be having a date with _somebody_ tomorrow, Kid Flash."

He stood in the center of the room, stunned. I could tell my words cut him like a knife. So why didn't I feel any better?

"I guess it doesn't matter who it's with." My intentionally strong finish died out into a wounded whisper. I jabbed the button by the door and listened to it _whoosh_ shut. My eyes were closed. The tears broke free and coursed unhindered down my cheeks.

I sprinted down the hall to my room. My door couldn't open fast enough.

I threw myself onto the bed, tucked my head under a pillow, and let myself cry.

* * *

Well, there's part of the conflict... Miss Linda Park - is an actual, canonical character in the DC universe, who in the actual comic book, Flash ends up marrying. xD

I saw an episode of Justice League, and Linda Park was in it, and they made her character SO ANNOYING! I am ashamed for all Asians... And I'm not being racist because I am Asian. hahaha

Anybody going to AnimeExpo in Los Angeles? I'm going with a bunch of my friends. We're cosplaying as characters from Bleach. :D

-K


	8. Betrayal

Hey faithful readers!

Sorry about the delay... I'm studying for SATs solo this year, so it was kinda hard for me to adjust... And I didn't get much done because this is the first summer that I've had free since I was in 6th grade. So yeah... Pity me a bit. ;D

I have lots of AP hw that I haven't finished yet, and band camp is coming up next Monday... Oh the joy...

Haha, yes, so thanks for bearing with me all this time. I have most of the next chapter written out, but I'll probably post it next Friday maybe? I might not have time...

And to make up for the wait this time, I wrote an extra-long chapter. :D Yay!

-K

I don't own anything, kthnx.

* * *

_Knockknockknock… Knockknockknock…_

…

_**BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!**_

I was out of bed, at the door, eyes sparking pink in less than a second.

"_WHA–?_" My voice died out. No one was there. Only when I stuck my head out of the open door did I see the red rose lying on the carpet. I poked a finger out to zap it with a hex.

Then I saw the paper. I was tempted to zap that too.

I sighed and checked both ways to make sure that Kid Flash wasn't lurking around to watch my reaction. The coast was clear – supposedly. I let my more mature side get the better of me and leaned down to snatch up the letter and rose before retreating back into my room. I flopped onto the bed and rubbed my eyes. They were still a little puffy, but luckily my eyes were normally pink. Unluckily, my head still hurt because I had cried so much. I needed some water. And soon.

With my pains – both physical and emotional – very much on my mind, I picked open the letter. I hoped and prayed to every deity I could think of that it was an apology because I certainly wasn't going to apologize first. Because I wasn't wrong. Was I?

I have the worst luck.

"Jinx,

I have to go clean up after my training session with the team. Let Linda in, will ya?

Kid Flash"

I sat in shocked silence for a moment. Then I exploded.

"WHO DOES HE THINK HE IS!" I thundered and threw the paper on the floor. My eyes burned pink, and as I stomped on the note, the paper fizzled out into tiny shreds. Once the paper was destroyed, I went for the rose. Not only was the message itself insulting, but so was the diction used. He acted like he _expected_ me to follow his orders. As if! Not after what he'd done!

I glared at the rose in my hand and felt it sizzle and curl. I imagined that it was Kid Flash's head, and it started wilting faster. When it was withered to a crisp, I stalked to my room's trashcan and crunched my fist around it, letting the black ashes flutter from my palm.

Still angry, I stormed back into the center of my room and began pacing. Old villain habits die hard.

"Great," I muttered to myself, "not only does he find himself another girl the first day in the stupid city, but he expects me to put up with it. And now I look like the bad guy because _he's_ being STUPID! _Grahhh_!"

I threw myself back onto the bed. I frowned, thinking, and muttered, "The team probably thinks I'm some crazy ex-girlfriend that just followed him here and gets jealous over every little, stupid thing…" I felt my voice growing softer as the statement went on. Even exaggerated, it rang with truth. I sighed. "Everybody probably hates me now…"

My anger melted away and regret quickly swept over me. I had overreacted yesterday… If Linda was Kid Flash's old friend, then she had a right to be so familiar with him…and she had been jealous too, right? But I had been out of control.

In my mind, I went over our brief and very heated conversation from the day before. I groaned. What had I been thinking? Time seemed to magnify my stupidity and childish jealousy.

But I couldn't lose to someone like her! I bolted up in bed. I had to remedy everything with Kid Flash before Linda came over today or else she would be able to drive a wedge deeper between the two of us!

I would control my emotions better from now on. I could get through the interview calmly and civilly… right? There was no other option. I _had_ to. For Kid Flash. I couldn't lose him that easily. Kid Flash was… He and I were…

My heart began thumping faster in my chest. I shook my head, not daring to think any further. I had to hurry and find him before Linda came. Sprinting for the bathroom, I got ready in a time that could rival even Kid Flash's fastest morning routine. While hurriedly pulling on a pair of my ankle-high boots, I glanced at the clock.

11:58

_Oh NO!_

I sprinted for the door, shoe in hand. The door slid open, and I hopped out into the hallway, trying to tug my other shoe on and dash down the hall at the same time. Suddenly, Kid Flash's message about the team's training session made perfect sense. I had missed our first practice together!

Obviously, no one had had the courage to come and wake me. How ironic. They _were_ superheroes, right?

I almost made it to the Common Room. The Titans' theme song interrupted me.

_Deet-dee-deet-deedeet-deedeet-deedeet!_

I skid to a halt. The doorbell.

_Deet-dee-deet-deedeet-deedeet-deedeet!_

I frowned. That would be Linda. Should I go and get it like Kid Flash wanted? Or should I let her wait while I talked things out with Kid Flash?

If I got the door, Kid Flash might see it as an act of good will on my part. And it would actually be a great chance to kill Linda with kindness… On the other hand, if I didn't get it, Kid Flash might get mad and go answer it himself. Then he'd be stuck with Linda in the long twenty-two-floor elevator ride up to the Common Room…

_Deet-dee-deet-deedeet-deedeet-deedeet!_

I groaned, did a little dance of frustration, and ran back the way that I came. I reached the elevator and was about to press the down button when the door for the stairs caught my eye. I grinned.

Time for a little indulgence.

I opened the door to the stairwell and peeked over the railing and grinned. There was about a square yard gap between the spirals of the stairs all the way down to the ground floor. Perfect.

With one fluid motion, I leapt over the metal railing and streamlined my body – head first, arms glued to my sides, and legs straight behind me – all for maximum speed. I enjoyed the freefall for about eighteen stories, then in a rapid flash, I brought my arms up crossed over my chest and flourished, releasing all the pent up energy.

The blast from my hexes buffeted my fall and I flipped in the air before landing on my feet in a crouch. I glanced at the smoldering wreckage behind me. It was still smoking, but I shrugged. That was the team's little present for not waking me up this morning.

_Deet-dee-deet-deedeet-deedeet-deedeet…_

Then my smile was gone. The fleeting bliss from the freefall fluttered away. I sighed and couldn't help my hands drifting to my clothes to straighten them before I walked to the front door.

There was a video monitor by the door. All the newest tech courtesy of Cyborg. To spite him and his precious computers, I ignored the monitor and punched the button to open the door. Besides. I didn't need to check who it was. There was only one person that it could be.

The door glided open. I took a deep, fortifying breath.

Her silhouette graced the doorway. "Kid Fla–!" Her voice died as she saw me.

I could tell how I looked to her. Hand on hip, battle smirk itching at the corners of my mouth, smoldering wreckage of the ground floor situated behind me. I was surprised that I didn't have to restrain my powers as much as I thought I would have to. But the temptation was still very much there.

_Just one little hex wouldn't hurt… much…_ A little voice cackled pleasingly in my mind. But I shook it away. I had to stay firm in something that Kid Flash had told me just a few weeks before.

"_Your enemies can match your hate, but kindness is something that they can never understand – which only makes them angrier. But it makes them wonder too if they're really the right ones. Besides, it worked with you, right?"_

I had playfully zapped him, but his words had haunted me for a while afterward. Now, I had some use for them. I sighed inwardly. I would probably hate myself for this later, but this was the right thing to do – the right thing for a _hero_ to do. No matter how awfully painful…

I smiled. Truly smiled. "Hey, Linda. Come on in."

Needless to say, she looked for booby-traps before stepping into the Tower. "Uhm… Hi… Jinx…" Satisfied that there weren't any trip wires or pressure pads or land mines under the carpet, she looked up at me. "Where's Kid?"

I was proud that I hid my grimace so well. "Oh, he just needed to clean up a little before the interview… The team had training today," I added at her questioning glance.

"Oh…" was all that Linda could manage as I beckoned her towards the Tower's elevator. She took a long look at the pile of rubble and broken cement chunks blocking the stairwell before entering the elevator. I stepped in behind her and pressed the button for the Common Room.

As the doors slid shut, I panicked.

_Stuck in a small, enclosed space with my arch-nemesis!_ My H.I.V.E training ordered me to start blasting. To stay my urges, I curled my far hand into a fist. No use in showing her how much I was struggling to keep my powers in check.

The elevator began to rise. The silence was so thick, even Herald wouldn't have been able to find enough space between the molecules to create a portal. It was in my best interest that I start a conversation first, but my lips felt glued together.

The elevator dinged.

Level 3. ONLY?

Cyborg had lied. High-powered lift, my butt! This thing was going slower than one of Brother Blood's Doomsday Device lectures! Slower than one of Billy Numerous' video games. Slower than Billy Numerous' mind!

Level 7... Fifteen floors left?

My fingers itched. I wanted so very badly to jab the up button a few dozen more times. But I stood still. Button-jabbing wouldn't hurry the elevator, and I didn't want to seem rude to Linda…

Level 11. Halfway there.

I nearly groaned. This was impossible. What had I been thinking? Kindness wasn't my thing. Blasting things and exploding objects was. Villainy was starting to look pretty sweet compared to the awkward situation that I was caught in now.

Level 13.

The numbers weren't going backwards, were they? My mind raced to find something to talk about, but anything I could think of was related to Kid Flash. And how lovely that conversation would be.

"_Oh, really? I didn't know that you were interested in my kind-of boyfriend! Did you know he asked me on a date yesterday, but you totally ruined it?"_

"Jinx?"

My heart jumped and nearly stopped. I slowly turned. "Yeah, Linda?"

She was looking down at the elevator's floor, a frown painted on her pretty face. "I'm sorry. I was a real jerk the other day."

I froze in disbelief. _Is she kidding or lying?_ Then I examined her body language and tone of voice. She seemed sincere. My gaze softened unwillingly.

To fill my shocked silence, Linda hurriedly continued, "I mean, I was really hostile towards you, even though it was your first time in the city. And Kid just used to be a really good friend, you know? So maybe we can start with a clean slate?"

She glanced up, hopeful. When she saw my thoughtful look, she smiled. I automatically smiled in return. "Sure," I blurted before my brain could register what my mouth had just committed us to.

_Ding._ The elevator doors slid open. Grudgingly, I thought, _Maybe she's not so bad after all_.

Famous last words.

I walked out first, and she followed. In an attempt to strike up a civil conversation, Linda began to chatter, "I met Kid a few years back, and we just really hit it off."

I hid my grimace again. _Must she talk about the one thing I had been avoiding?_

"I mean, he was hurt after this one battle, and I helped nurse him back to health–"

"The couch is over there," I interrupted, barely disguising my annoyance behind a smile. "Do you want something to drink or eat?"

Linda plopped down on the couch – as if she had always belonged – and thought for a moment. "Can I have a diet soda, and maybe a bag of chips?"

_Doesn't that defeat the purpose of the diet soda?_ I wondered as I walked back to the kitchen, and prayed that I had distracted her enough that she wouldn't start talking about Kid Flash again.

Of course, she started talking again. "Where was I? Oh yeah! Kid had this really badly broken leg, you see? And he was just _so helpless_! Of course I let him stay in my house. But he had to hide in my closet every time I went to school so my mom wouldn't find him. She would kill me if she ever found a guy in my room!"

_Would've saved me the trouble_, I shot a glare at Linda out of the corner of my eye. I was digging through the fridge for her diet soda. With four guys in the Tower and me not really a fan of diet anything, trying to find a spare soda can was really difficult. Linda's non-stop chatter wasn't helping my frustration any. I began to feel my anger bubbling back to the surface.

"–And of course when he got all better, he took me out to dinner and we went to a rose garden afterwards–"

"Linda!" I snapped, then caught my tone. I pretended to cough to disguise my anger. When I ended, I cleared my throat. "We don't have any diet soda, so do you want–"

Linda wrinkled her nose. "Oh… Well, it's ok then," she sighed, clearly disappointed. I couldn't help but think that she was slightly disappointed in _me_ for being unable to find her stupid soda. Maybe it was the clear angle of her head and the disapproving look in her eyes. It was just a soda. What was wrong with her?

"It's a shame…" She gave me a sad, pitying smile. "But what else am I supposed to expect around here?"

I felt my body tense. I desperately tried to soothe it, knowing exactly where this was headed. "_Excuse me?_"

"It's just like I had predicted after reading your file." Linda stood, wiped a finger along the top of the couch, and frowned at her finding. "This place is a wreck, even though it's brand new. Your team can hardly cooperate together. And poor Kid Flash gets stuck with an ex-villainess on his team – his first chance to shine as a leader, and it's snatched away by some semi-reformed, H.I.V.E dropout–"

The window behind her exploded.

Linda shrieked and ducked. Her hand should have gone to her head to protect herself from flying glass shards, but it deviated quickly to her back pocket. Unusual. But there was no time to dwell on insignificant things – I was too enraged. I couldn't think straight. My feet drew me towards her. I could hear the sizzle as my feet sparked pink and seared my footprints into the brand-new carpet.

"I knew it!" Linda looked up at me with a sneer. "Impetuous. Rash. Unstable. I knew that someone like _you_ could never reform! _Ug_!–"

I jerked her up by the front of her shirt. My eyes narrowed pink. Some part of my mind was sending off red alarm bells. Something wasn't right here… But I couldn't focus. Linda kept on talking.

"You can't be a hero, Jinx. Give it up," Linda sneered. "You're a danger to Kid. He doesn't want you anyway. He never has–"

"SHUT UP!" My last shred of reasoning shattered. My deepest, darkest fear voiced aloud by this… this plotting piece of– "You have no idea what you're talking about!"

My glowing eyes should have been a warning, but Linda soldiered on.

"Don't I?" She laughed. The sound was full of pity and spite. "I think I hit it dead on."

My battle smirk curled my mouth. And this time, there was no fear behind it. I was going to enjoy this. "Oh, something's going to hit dead on."

I raised a swift hand.

An inch before it made contact with Linda's cheek, my arm jerked to a halt. I closed my eyes, fuming inside of myself._ Do it! She lured you in and tricked you. Worse! She's mocking you with your deepest insecurities! Hurt her! Make her pay! _

No. This wasn't the answer. Kid Flash had faith in me. We were still on shaky ground, but Linda Park was not going to pose a threat to me any longer. I was no longer the villain I once was. As long as I knew that Kid Flash believed in me… That was enough for me.

My eyes opened, no longer blazing bright pink. I looked down at a very surprised Linda. A mixture of fury and surprise clouded her face. I leaned over ready to drop her and lower my hand.

Of course that's when everything went wrong.

The main door to the Common Room slid open, and Kid Flash stepped through. He instantly saw me, holding Linda by her shirtfront, hand ready to slap her across her blemish-free face.

His surprise swiftly clotted into fury. "Jinx!" echoed through the room.

I turned, eyes wide. "Kid Flash?"

A blur of red and yellow rushed past me. I turned back to Linda. She was gone. My hands were empty. My eyes darted over to the couch where Kid Flash was laying a sobbing Linda on the cushions.

"Kid, I was so scared. I-I thought that she was going to–"

"Shh," quieted Kid Flash comfortingly. "It's going to be ok, Linda."

Then he called to me, his back to my face, and I swear that my blood froze in my veins.

"Jinx." His voice was hard. I saw his shoulders tense and sensed the shadows hovering over his hidden eyes. I could do nothing but stand still in shock. He was silent for a moment.

It was the longest and most horrible moment in my life. I would forever remember it as _the_ missed chance – the one golden opportunity to clear up my mistake before everything came crashing down. It was the one chance that I missed that would haunt me forever.

The moment passed. Then everything seemed to explode at once.

A furious red-and-yellow blur knocked into me, driving the wind from my lungs. I found my stomach forced up against the kitchen counter, both hands twisted behind my back – as if I were a common criminal. Kid Flash stood behind me, tweaking my arms at odd angles to keep me there.

"Why'd you do it, Jinx!" He pressed me harder against the edge of the counter. My stomach began to hurt. Pangs of pain sparked up my arms.

"Why!" he demanded.

I tried to breathe in, but he had me pinned so hard that I could just barely draw enough breath to whisper, "Kid Flash – You're hurting me–"

"Like you almost hurt Linda?" he snapped at me. His voice seemed to be made of steel. Hard, cold, and impenetrable. "She doesn't have powers, Jinx. You could have killed her! I thought you had changed!"

_I have changed!_ I wanted to argue back. My tongue felt heavy in my mouth. Everything felt heavy. "I didn't do–"

"Don't deny it, Jinx," Kid Flash interrupted. "I saw you with my own eyes!"

_You're wrong! I'm not that kind of person anymore! Have faith in me! TRUST ME!_ My brain ordered my lungs to fill, my mouth to form the words – to scream them. Scream until my lungs burst and my vocal cords cracked and I could no longer assert my innocence. But nothing came. My body refused to work.

Kid Flash didn't trust me. He didn't believe in me anymore. Who was to say that I wasn't the person that he thought I was? Who was to say that I could still be a hero? Who could I trust now?

From the edge of my mind, I heard Kid Flash still yelling. Still furious at me and my actions. Still untrusting and unloving. Inside my mind was silent when the answer finally came.

_No one_. I could trust no one. I truly believe that my heart broke at that moment.

"Get… _away from me_!" I snarled into the tabletop. My eyes flashed pink. The kitchen counter crumbled.

Fueled by anger, I pivoted under one of my pinned arms, twisting my entire body around. Kid Flash was now the one with his arms tweaked at an unnatural angle. A simple slide and flick of the wrist, and I was now the one pinning him by his wrists. I held on tightly to make sure that he didn't escape. I met his glare with one of my fiercest before finishing off the fight.

Engulfed by fury, I planted a swift, but firm kick into his stomach, ramming him backwards. With enough room between us, I spun on the ball of my foot, driving my other heel into the side of his head. On the impact, I let go of his wrists and sent Kid Flash flying across the room into the couch.

"You _JERK!_" I screamed, finally. Finally the words came when it was already too late. Kid Flash groaned, but was up in an instant, standing between me and Linda. Still trying to protect her from a threat that didn't exist. I felt my eyes growing hot – a tell-tale sign that my powers were about do some real damage. I struggled to keep back the wall of hexes I wanted to aim at his face. I clenched my fists at my sides, trying to hold it all in. "Can't you just believe me? Is that so hard?"

With a swipe of his arm, Kid Flash took a threatening step forward. "Jinx, I know what I saw. Stop lying!"

Then I saw his face fall. For a moment, uncertainty controlled his body. Kid Flash looked me straight in the eye. The sorrow and regret passing over both our faces tainted a bitter taste in my mouth. I stopped struggling against my powers, and the pink in my palms fizzled out.

"Jinx…" his voice broke under the pain. He looked away in time, but not quick enough to prevent me from seeing the glistening of tears behind his mask. "Please… Don't lie to me… I can't take it. I thought that you and me… I thought…"

"Kid Flash," I stepped forward, and though several yards still separated us, my arm outstretched to touch him. My heart began to thud as my lips formed my next words. "I lov–"

"Kid! Look out!"

A blur of black hair and blue denim tackled into the hero. Something exploded in a shower of pink sparks.

When the smoke cleared, cotton batting drifted down from the ceiling. The couch behind Kid Flash had exploded – _in a_ _shower of pink sparks_! Kid Flash and Linda looked up at me in horror.

I stole a glance at my outstretched arm.

"No…" I whispered. My powers! But my eyes hadn't glowed. I didn't release anything!

"Jinx… How could you…?" Kid Flash stared at me as if I were a stranger. He quickly pushed his grief aside. Rage clouded his eyes. He yelled at me from across the room. "Jinx! HOW COULD YOU!"

At a loss for words, I felt my heart once again grow heavy. Tears smarted in my eyes. Kid Flash made to rise – to come after and arrest me. On a desperate instinct, I flicked a hand at him. He didn't dodge – he couldn't. Linda was behind him.

My light hex caught him in the chest and threw him back. I didn't stick around to see whether I had knocked him out or not.

For the first time in only a few months, I ran away, once again a villainess.


	9. The Realization

I sprinted down the hall to my room – more frantically than yesterday. I hadn't bothered to hex the door to the Common Room because I knew that Kid Flash could just vibrate through the sealed door anyways. I was running away on borrowed time.

For once, my luck held. No superteen came racing down the hall to tackle me down and arrest me. No alarm was raised. No sign at all that I had just betrayed everything I had come to cherish.

The hallway leading to my room seemed extra long, and I didn't have the patience to wait for my door to open. I fried the circuitry with a wave of pink hexes and kicked the door in. It fell with a metal clang that made me flinch. Everything I did seemed too loud. It attracted too much attention.

My duffel bag hitting the bed, the shoes and clothes dropped inside, the miscellaneous keepsakes safeguarded in the inside pouch, and the finality as the zipper swooped close. It all seemed deafening.

I spent a precious moment debating whether to take with me one of the many roses that Kid Flash had given me. I stood in the doorway and twirled the thorny stem between my fingers. My bag cut into my shoulder, distracting me for a moment.

"Ow!" A drop of blood dribbled out from the cut on my finger. I stuck the wounded digit in my mouth, and simply plucked a petal from the flower. It would serve as a reminder of my stupidity. You can't trust anyone. Not even the ones you _think_ you love.

Love… No, I shook my head. I couldn't possibly have ever considered loving that idiot. And what I had almost blurted out in the Common Room before the mystery explosion was simply a big mistake. He obviously didn't trust or love me. Why should I love him back?

My heavy heart still ached. I wish it would stop lying to me. I had never loved Kid Flash, so how could I be heartbroken?

On my way out of my room – soon to be filled by another and more worthy Titan – I tossed the rose in the trash. The careless flick of my hand leaked a drop of blood onto the carpet, but I was beyond caring. I had overstayed my time here. I had to go… _NOW_.

My breathing became labored as I ran down the hallway. The elevator wasn't too far away, but it seemed to take forever getting there. My duffel bag thumped against my back, adding extra weight to my already-heavy body. To calm myself, I recited the directions in my head. Left at the next fork. Down the straight hall, and past the security room to the elevator.

I made the left, jinking around the corner. My ankle almost twisted, but I righted myself in time. My bag slapped me in the back with a heavy smack. I looked up and saw the elevator. Relief blossomed in my heart. Revived, I ran down the corridor.

Something black swirled at the corner of my vision. Alarmed, I skid to a halt. It was only the open door to the security room.

Great. Heartbreak and paranoia all in the same day.

Wait – _open?_ Cyborg had briefed us on all the Tower's security systems – one of which was the extreme safety measures required to open the sliding door of the security room.

Frowning, I backpedaled to the room. The door was halfway open. Artificial light peeked through the crack from the dozens of monitors lining the walls. Somewhat concerned, but unwilling to waste any more time with what appeared to be a bug in Cyborg's supposedly "you-know-it's-awesome" security system, I stepped back from the jammed door and turned to finish my sprint down the hallway.

That's when the monitor caught my eye. At first it was just the red and yellow color of Kid Flash's uniform, and I could only see the half of the monitor from a certain angle through the crack in the door, but the color instantly caught my attention. Curious to know what was taking the speedster so long to apprehend me, I squeezed through and into the security room.

I froze.

Kid Flash was still right on the carpet in the Common Room where I had hexed him. But his lips were locked with Linda Park's. And his hand–!

My heart couldn't choose between anger and shameful sorrow. Heart already broken to bits, my head chose instead. Anger and murderous thoughts took the forefront of my mind.

"Who's the liar now!" I yelled at the monitor screen. My eyes glowed pink and my hand flashed. The keyboard beneath the monitor exploded in shards of plastic. The other monitors cracked, spraying yellow sparks across the room. Ironically, as my hexes fried the monitor before me, the computer caught itself in a loop.

The infuriating image of Kid Flash groping Linda's rear end jumped and jittered on the only surviving monitor.

Still shaking with fury but too ashamed to destroy anything more, I hurried from the room. The door shut behind me. I made my way to the staircase. With my powers this haywire, I probably would've fried the elevator. A fat lot of good that would've done me.

My freefall almost ended badly. I was slightly distracted by the tears streaming down my cheeks, and I almost forgot to buffer my two hundred-foot fall.

"I trusted you… And you lied to me. I hate you. I'll hate you forever."

...

"_Jinx!" Kid Flash's voice rang out in the silent room. His outstretched hand dropped to the carpet. His heart denied everything that had happened in the last few minutes. But his head and his eyes told him the horrible truth._

_Jinx had attacked Linda. And then she had attacked him. _

She had a reason, but you wouldn't listen_, insisted his heart. He pressed a heavy hand to his chest. It hurt… but maybe it was just the hex that she had thrown at him before escaping. _

_It seemed that just a few minutes ago, he had been walking back from the showers, congratulating himself on being so clever. And now… Now nothing would ever be right again. _

Jinx… I trusted you… I thought that you had changed. I thought that you wanted to be by my side. I thought that maybe you… loved me…

" –_id… Kid… KID FLASH!"_

_He blinked, suddenly aware of his surroundings. Linda crouched before him, her head cocked to one side. Dark hair spilled over one shoulder. Kid Flash looked away. _

"_Jinx… I can't believe that she'd do something like this," Kid Flash mumbled to himself. Then he blinked. What was he doing just sitting here? He would go find her and make her give an explanation. It wouldn't solve everything, but it was a start. He would probably have to grovel or something equally as embarrassing, but to get Jinx back – to redeem her – it was worth it. She would have an explanation. She had to. _

_The hero stood quickly and turned towards the door. Hopefully Jinx hadn't hexed it shut. Vibrating through solid objects was a bit tiring._

"_Kid! Where are you going?" Linda asked. A note of desperation tinged her voice. _

"_I'm going to find Jinx. She still has to be in the Tower somewhere–"_

"_No!" Something tugged fiercely at his glove. Kid Flash glanced down. Linda was clinging to his hand, her eyes moist with tears. "Please, Kid! She's only going to hurt you!" _

"_Jinx wouldn't hurt me," he frowned. "At least not without a reason."_

_Linda tugged harder. Kid suddenly found himself at face level with her. A little too close for comfort. He swallowed hard and tried to leaned away. Then she spoke._

"_I have proof," Linda said slowly, maintaining a steady eye contact. "I know she hasn't changed. She's been lying to you all along."_

_His heart beat faster. "No. That's not possible," his mouth denied – but his body sat. After all… he had seen what he had seen… but even then… _

"_It's possible," Linda nodded eagerly. _

_A bit too eagerly… Kid Flash's eyes almost narrowed. Then he caught himself. This was Linda who had saved him when he had needed it the most. Sure she hadn't been too pleased when he had gone to Jump City, but that was just how friends were…_

_While he was thinking, Linda had been digging in her back pocket. She finally produced a mini tape recorder. Still frowning, the teen hero watched as she clicked the Rewind button. The few seconds it took to rewind were horrible. _

_Then she pressed play. _

_Linda spoke from inside the recorder:_

"–_**m sorry. I was a real jerk the other day.**__"_

_Silence. _

"_**I mean, I was really hostile towards you, even though it was your first time in the city. And Kid just used to be a really good friend, you know? So maybe we can start with a clean slate?**__"_

_Another moment of silence. Then the tape seemed to skip. Something was off with the background noises. They seemed different. But Kid Flash had no time to think. _

_An explosion boomed through the recorder's tiny speakers. He could hear glass tinkling to the ground. That was probably the window gone. He glanced up at the gaping hole in the Common Room wall. _

_His eyes flicked down to the recorder, and they widened at what he then heard._

"_**SHUT UP! You have no idea what you're talking about!**__"_

_Jinx sounded really mad. The fury even translated through the tinny recording. _

"_**Don't I?–**__"_

_Linda hastily clicked the recorder off and frowned at it. Then she glanced up at him, watching his reaction. _

_And honestly, Kid Flash couldn't give one. His mind and heart were battling it out again, but this time, his heart was failing. Slowly, he felt as if he were coming out of a dream – and stepping straight into a nightmare. _

"_She lied to you, Kid. She was just using you. I don't know why, but–"_

"_Why are you showing me this?" Kid Flash glanced over at the reporter. She seemed flustered for a moment, but she recovered well._

"_Because," she whispered with a small smile and crept forward on hands and knees. Kid Flash watched as she tucked the recorder in the back pocket of her jeans. _

"_Because…" She looked down for a moment, and when she looked up at him she bit her lip. "I can't take it if you're with somebody else."_

_Kid Flash blinked. "…Linda?"_

_She crept forward, silently closing the gap between their bodies. "Kid… Ever since you came into my life, I knew that you were the only one for me."_

_Shocked, Kid Flash did his best to try and scoot away, but found himself trapped by the couch's smoking remains. _

_Oh. Crap. _

_He laughed nervously and stuttered out, "H-hey, Linda… Let's not be too hasty–"_

"_Who's too hasty? I know that you like me too." Linda finally reached him. She placed a tender hand on his cheek. Kid Flash flinched, but Linda was too busy talking to notice. "And I'll get rid of anyone who gets in our way."_

_Then it hit him like a ton of bricks. Suddenly, everything made sense – but Linda… Had she really done everything? Had she really set Jinx up? _

_Not everything made sense though… Some things were still unexplained, but if his growing suspicion was right, then Jinx was in danger right now. Kid Flash's glance flit around the room, trying to find the quickest route of escape. _

_But if he knew Linda like he thought he did, then she would have a backup plan…Something to ensure complete victory no matter what. _

_But what?_

"_Kid… I love you," Linda murmured and leaned in for a kiss. _

_At that moment, Kid Flash knew what he had to do, and how to do it. But he couldn't help but cringe in horror as he let Linda kiss him, and he reached for the recorder in her back pocket. _

Jinx, please forgive me for this… I have to.

_The moment he had Jinx's lifeline, he retreated. Kid Flash pushed Linda back and dashed to his feet, ending a foot from the door. It opened automatically. He put a hand in to stall it and turned back to a was-confused and becoming-angry Linda. _

"_Kid!" she barked. "What are you doing?"_

"_Going after Jinx," he replied as if it were the easiest answer in the world. _

_Linda Park's eyes almost popped out of her head. Not a very good look for her. "But you heard the recording and–"_

_Kid Flash's eyes darkened for a moment. "Jinx wouldn't say something like that. She's above you and your little games. And so am I."_

_He turned to rush outside and find Jinx. He had to get to her before the situation unraveled even further. At this point, they were both in danger, and he needed to protect her. _

"_Wait!" Linda stumbled to her feet. A frown creased her pretty brow. "If you leave, I'll spread the recording of her on the internet! She'll never be a hero again!"_

So that's your ace in the hole… Good thing, I'm already one step ahead.

_Ignorant, Linda continued. "Everyone will hate her, and you'll be sorry!" Her voice squeaked up an octave in desperation. "Just come back to me, and we can make this work. I promise!" _

_Kid Flash froze in the doorway._

"_Linda, I thought we were friends, but I guess I was wrong." The hero glanced at the broken girl from over his shoulder. "The Linda I used to know wouldn't have resorted to something as low as this."_

"_Is she blackmailing you? Is it mind-control!" Linda screeched. She stomped forward. "What could you possibly see in a girl like _THAT_ when you have ME?" _

_He waited until she was only a few feet away before he turned to face her in all of her raving glory. He was smiling. _

"_Jinx is Jinx," he replied simply. "And I think I love her."_

_ Still smiling and blushing slightly, Kid Flash dashed out the open door. _

_Shuddering with rage and disbelief, Linda screamed after him, "I'll ruin her, Kid Flash! I'll make you sorry!"_

_Then he was back again, quick enough to stop the door from closing. "Oh!" Kid Flash said cheerily, "One more thing! Computer–!"_

"_**Yes, Kid Flash**__," replied an artificial, female voice. _

"_Remove security risk using procedure Beta Two-two-zero-one-five non-lethal," commanded the hero. _

_A giant glass tube sank down from the Common Room ceiling, suctioning to the floor and capturing an irate Linda under glass. A moment before the computer executed its programming, Kid Flash leaned forward. His hand vibrated through the glass, and emptied something into Linda's palms. The red-head grinned apologetically. "Sorry, I think I broke it."_

_Too shocked for words, Linda glanced into her cupped hands, realized that her recorder was smashed into little more than plastic casing and ruined tape, and looked up just in time to give Kid Flash a parting snarl. _

_Then a gaping hole opened directly under her feet and swallowed her. _

"_Kiiiiiid Fllllaaaaaaa–"_

_The hole snipped shut, chopping off Linda's cry. _

"_**Security Risk contained. Would you like anything else, Kid Flash?**__"_

"_No thanks." Kid Flash rushed out of the room and was outside, navigating the streets of Leaf Metropolis within moments. He murmured to no one in particular, "There's a girl I need to save."

* * *

_

You guys get it, right? I was using a first-person viewpoint for the entire story, so the italics section is the stuff that happens when Jinx isn't there to witness it. I was planning on telling that part of the story later with Kid Flash's POV, but switching POVs is a pain and really unprofessional. I'm pushing it even here. yeah... haha

And I meant for Linda to be more human and emotional, but the words kept coming and she became more psychotic. Yayness. But when I saw the reviews, I knew that I couldn't make it a grey area. I had to clearly define that she was evil. But that's very Teen Titans-eque. How ironic, considering that's where Jinx is right now in the story - in the grey area between good and bad. Hahaha

Oh the joy... Summer AP English homework is messing with my BRAIN!

RAWR! Not cool...

Anyways, I hope you all liked it. Hopefully I redeemed Kid Flash mostly... I was worried that I injured his character beyond repair in the previous chapter... Hahaha, oh dear... Hopefully I got you guys to like him a little bit more.

Oh! Did I mention the tube that ferried Linda out of the Tower led to a sewage pipe?

-K


	10. Never Coming Back

Hello all my readers! I'm really sorry for neglecting you all for so long. Another year of high school has come and knocked me back on my butt, BUT I'm proud to say that I socked it right back. :)

I got back my muse for this story back, I'm proud to report, and it only took me all five seasons of TT all in one go! D:

I've realized that Jinx is a really hard character to write, haha... In the cartoon, we see her mad, and sometimes insecure, but we never see her sad or scared so it's hard trying to portray her as such. Dunno, might just be my lack of imagination... Or something.

Heads up because this is the last chapter of the flashback "scene". :D Oh! BTW, Kid Flash has already figured out who was behind Jinx's "attack" on the Tower and backing Linda, but Jinx hasn't...

Happy reading!

-K

* * *

I pulled the hat lower over my eyes. It had begun.

I hadn't expected Linda to be able to hold Kid Flash for long, but I had been hoping for longer than five minutes. Ragged breezes shot red and yellow through traffic, zig-zagging through streets and startling passersby. He was looking for me.

Unfortunately for me, I still had three more blocks to go until the subway station. $25 could buy me a one-way ticket to pretty much anywhere – I just hadn't figured out where yet.

Gotham was too depressing, Bludhaven too violent, and Jump City was simply out of the question. I had nowhere to run, but no choice _but_ to run. I never wanted to see Kid Flash ever again.

I slipped a hand into my pocket. Of all the things Kid Flash had given me, I had taken a single rose petal with me as a reminder of my mistakes, but I caught myself stroking the rich velvet softly. Shaking my hand out of my pocket in disgust, I quickened my pace, hopefully not as noticeably as it felt.

I was going to be ok, I reassured myself. Just as long as I avoided him…

"Excuse me – have you seen this girl?" His voice!

My heart rocketed to my throat. Eyes wide, I turned… but he wasn't talking to me. Kid Flash, armed with my picture, had accosted an older woman farther behind me on the sidewalk, and then a group of schoolboys, and then a lone businessman. He was getting closer and closer to me.

Forcing the panic from my gut, I spun around and began walking even faster. I could hear his voice getting louder and louder as he sped nearer and nearer.

Then there was a hand on my shoulder.

"Excuse me–"

I whirled, ready to blast him. And the world disappeared in a swirl of black.

I reappeared just as suddenly in an alleyway beside the sidewalk. Safely hidden in the shadows, I saw him as he zipped past, just short of the entrance, and as he said, "Could've sworn there was someone here… Oh well."

And he zipped away.

Letting out a heavy breath, I turned. There was only one villain who could make me disappear and reappear like that. Kyd Wykkyd. Problem was, he was supposed to be frozen in a secret Brotherhood of Evil base in Paris.

I wasn't disappointed though. Kyd, my former H.I.V.E Five teammate, stood before me in all of his impossibly unfrozen glory. It was as if the Brain's takedown had never happened.

"Kyd!" I shifted a step back as my eyes glowed pink. "How did you escape! You were supposed to be gone for good!"

"Well, I wouldn't say _for good_…"

I gasped as See-More stepped forward out of the alley's shadows, followed by Mammoth, Gizmo, and Billy Numerous. The H.I.V.E Five – all of them as right as rain.

"Some snotty do-good citizens thought they could reform us," Gizmo explained as he sneered at me. His metal spider legs whirred as he stepped forward. "Bunch of losers got the government to unfreeze us as a test group. We got sick of their rehab and busted out."

"Yeah, and their food was lousy too," interrupted Mammoth.

On any other day, I would've pointed out that the government probably unfroze the least dangerous of the villains in Paris, which said a lot about the amount of respect that even civilians had for them. And I would've also pointed out that if they had actually stayed with the program, made it _seem_ like a success, convinced the government to free the rest of the villains, and then broken out all together, then they wouldn't be the only villains left for the Titans to bash on.

But today was today; I had Kid Flash after me, a broken heart dying in my chest, and now five villains onto me. I had to finish this quickly before they could alert Kid Flash of my whereabouts.

"Let's get this over with, you twits," I snapped, letting the energy build up in my hands. "If you want revenge, you'll have to take a rain check."

"Hold up, Jinx!" See-More immediately raised his hands in a gesture of innocence. "We aren't here to fight!"

"…You're not…" I haltingly repeated, immediately suspicious.

"We actually have a proposition for you, snot-face," Gizmo piped in, and considering all of the disgusting, immature things he _could've_ called me, 'snot-face' was a compliment.

They were being…_nice_ to me – the traitor. Now I knew something was wrong. I wasn't stupid, and I wasn't going to fall for their silly little trap.

"As if," I shot back at them. "Whatever you want to say I don't want to hear."

"C'mon Jinx, just listen for once, will ya?" Mammoth's gravelly tones joined the others' as he stepped closer to me and held out a friendly hand.

"No," I said firmly. "Now go away. I don't have time for you losers."

"But Billy here and I," Billy Numerous and one of his clones slug their arms around each other. "Wanted to hear all the juicy tidbits."

"Ain't that right, Billy? Looks like she and her little boyfriend had a fight."

Before I could stop myself, I snapped back, "Shut up! What do you know?"

Ashamed of my loss of control, I pulled back, grimacing. See-More reached forward and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Sorry Jinx, but we told you that guy was no good."

"Shut up," I muttered unconvincingly, glaring at the ground. I noticed his hand and shrugged it off. "What do you care?"

"Actually…"

The anticipation in See-More's tone made me glance up. He grinned at me, eyeball twinkling.

"We want you back, Jinx!"

And Gizmo interjected with crossed arms, "But that doesn't mean we still like you!"

I blinked, stunned at the sudden turn of events. They wanted me back… Somebody actually still wanted me. Perhaps there was somewhere for me to turn after all…

No. I shook the shred of hope from my mind. I may have been depressed; I may not have been a Titan at that point, but hell if I was going to turn bad again and go running back to the H.I.V.E. I blinked and felt the pink flood into my eyes. Raising my hand I said, "Sorry, but I have a no-loser policy. And you guys are _so_ on the list."

And I snapped my fingers.

The ground beneath them ruptured, and all five desperately tried to regain their footing. By the time they turned back to me, I was gone.

Not caring about looking conspicuous anymore, I sprinted down the street, flitting through the crowds and losing my hat in the process. My pink hair shone like a spotlight among the blacks and browns of the city, but I didn't care. If I couldn't hide anymore, I had to get away – and fast.

My duffel bag banged against my back; I shoved it to the side to make running easier – but the strap decided to snag itself on a newsstand to my right. It jerked me back, and I fell heavily. For a moment on the ground, I watched the newsstand teeter back and forth between its upright position and crashing down around my head.

Then it settled standing up. I let out a pent-up breath and stood. People around me were staring, but I decided that I couldn't avoid it now… I would just have to move faster than Kid Flash could get word of the sightings.

Turning abruptly, I began sprinting again in the direction of the subway station. Unconsciously, my hand wound its way into my pocket to check on the rose petal… but it found nothing.

Skidding to a halt, I whipped around, eyes desperately scanning the ground. There! A few feet from the newsstand. Before I could second-guess myself, I had run back and snatched it up. Then I frowned at myself. I had chosen a stupid petal over my chance to escape. I had chosen him again. What was all that about learning from my mistakes?

The newsstand behind me erupted in a shower of pink sparks. The explosion blossomed around me, and I shielded myself with my arms. I could hear people screaming.

But I had never released any magic… What was going on?

I coughed through the smoke, and then realized that I was surrounded by flame.

"Hey scuzz-ball, don't you know fire's hot? You might get burned," Gizmo cackled. I heard the jets of his pack ignite, and saw him spiraling above me.

I growled and whipped in a quick circle, dousing the fire with an arc of magic. "What did you do?" I demanded, eyes blazing pink.

Gizmo crossed his arms over his chest and leered down at me. Reaching into his pack, he produced a small black ball. "Say hello to the H.I.V.E-Hexer."

"It copies your powers," See-More leapt out in front of me. His single eyeball was narrowed into a smug glare. "Right down to the pink flare you give off."

"But ours packs a bigger punch," Mammoth joined his teammate in the street. He tossed a H.I.V.E-Hexer up and down in his palm.

"And it looks all the same, don't it," Billy Numerous chucked one at a nearby building.

It exploded in a criss-cross of pink magic. I stood, gaping at the collapsing rubble in horror. People screamed as they ran for cover, and I couldn't seem to move. I was busy remembering.

_The couch behind Kid Flash exploded in a shower of pink sparks. But I hadn't used my powers at all._

"You…" I growled. My fists clenched tighter. The asphalt beneath my feet began to buckle and melt, my fury fueling my powers. I was so angry that my battle smirk didn't even come out. "You were the ones who attacked Kid Flash in the Tower!"

"Ya got that right!" Billy crowed and slapped his knee. "Framed you nice and good, din't we?"

"Hrrah!" I yelled and shot a bolt of magic at Billy. He dodged, and the hex hit a car behind him. It exploded, catapulting the mass of burning metal into the sky before it crashed down again in a fiery blast.

"Missed me – Missed me – M-m-missed M-me," Billy gloated as he multiplied, each of his clones echoing the other.

"And guess what?" See-More tossed a black sphere at the street. The black asphalt ruptured and blew out in an angry, pink explosion. He turned to smirk at me. "We even sent your boyfriend a little distraction – one we knew he couldn't keep his hands off of."

My eyes widened. "Linda…"

"Yeah, that babe would do anything for him," Mammoth gloated. "We win. You lose."

A swirl of black caught my eye – too late for me to block. Kyd's fist caught me in the face, shooting me backwards. I collided with the cement, tumbling once before skidding to a stop. Pain whipped through my body. I groaned, sitting up and touching a hand to my aching head.

"If you don't come with us, you pig-sniffer," Gizmo's smug smirk glinted evilly, "then we'll tear your precious city apart."

"And blame _you_ for it," Mammoth ended in a deep, threatening growl.

I glanced down at the gravelly asphalt and frowned. "It's not my city," I murmured. "Not anymore."

See-More's smile widened. "Well, then I guess you won't mind if–"

"But that doesn't mean that I can stand by and watch you destroy it," I snarled back. I was up in a flash, flinging sparking pink waves at them. The magic caught See-More in the chest, throwing him back into Billy and Kyd.

But they didn't retaliate. As one, the H.I.V.E Five produced their own H.I.V.E-Hexers and tossed them. The explosions rocked the ground, and I wobbled unsteadily, trying to regain my balance. Stability descended once again, and that's when I heard him.

"Jinx!"

I whipped around, eyes wide in panic. "Kid Flash!"

And there he was, hands not poised heroically on his hips, not the daring and bold entrance he always made, but one haggard and worn, blue eyes cloudy in turmoil. He had run himself to exhaustion looking for me. A bolt of uncertainty shot through me, but then it was gone. He couldn't possibly be worried about a traitor. If he was worried about anything, it was Linda.

"Jinx!" He rested a hand against a light pole, head hanging as he panted out, "Good… I managed to find you. The H.I.V.E–"

"Is already here, you crud-munching loser," Gizmo shrilled from behind me.

Kid Flash's head jerked up, eyes wide behind his mask. Only then did he seem to see the terrible destruction around him. He took in the fiery devastation, the screaming throes of civilians, and finally, me seemingly sided with the H.I.V.E Five against him.

I watched him frown off to the side for a moment before a solid resolve claimed his face. "Jinx."

Suspicious, I took a step back. He either wanted one of two things: to capture me or to apologize – but considering the circumstances, and his very _intimate_ moment with Linda, I knew that he had to be up to no good.

"Go away, Kid Flash," I snarled at him. "I don't want anything to do with you anymore."

"Jinx, you've got to listen to me! The H.I.V.E – they–"

"I've got to listen?" I shot back at him. "Since when have I _got_ to do anything for you? Last time I checked, we were _through_!"

"O~H!" The H.I.V.E Five snickered behind me. I could feel the nerves pulsing in my forehead, but I would deal with one annoyance at a time – starting with the most pressing one.

Crossing my arms over my chest, I glared at Kid Flash.

"Look, Jinx," slightly annoyed at the H.I.V.E also, his voice was starting to take an edge, "I'm sorry. I made a mistake."

I scoffed at him. "Whatever. If I remember correctly, you weren't exactly the most trusting person before, so you have no right to ask for my trust now."

He was scowling by then, mirroring my own glower. "Jinx! Do you honestly think that I'd use such a stupid trap! I mean it'd take me five seconds to round you guys up!" Kid Flash swiped his arm in an open arc. "But I'm not! I'm showing you that I trust you _now_!"

"Oh?" I challenged back at him. "Now, but not back in the Tower? Not when it _mattered_? Not when your precious Linda Park was there?"

"She's not mine!" he fired back at me. "She never was."

I rolled my eyes. _Here come the lies._

"I never wanted her, Jinx!" He lashed an angry hand through the air to emphasize his point and said, "I want _you_!"

I had prepared myself mentally for his oncoming attack of lies, but this – his open admission, his truthfully tone, and his _words_ – they threw me. I glanced up sharply at him, and he immediately locked gazes with me.

We stayed that way for a moment, heated stares fixed on each other. Then he sighed and ran a heavy hand through his hair.

"So, please…" Kid Flash glanced down, his voice growing soft. "Please don't leave… I… need you to stay."

I furiously fought the blush creeping across my cheeks. His words meant nothing; they were all lies. Weren't they?

And here came another of those pivotal moments: a second of my life where I had to choose between the right choice and the wrong choice. Trust him or don't.

His eyes, his words, his desperation struck me, and I almost forgave him everything. But then I remembered his actions, his hands on her, his disbelief, and I felt my heart harden to ice. So once again, as with the many times before in my villainous life, I made the wrong choice. Don't trust him.

I steeled myself mentally. He was just acting this way because Linda wasn't here. The thumping, aching muscle in my chest served as a warning: don't ever trust him. Never again.

So I shook my head, snapping myself out of my shock and scowled at him. "Yeah, right. Whatever trap you're planning isn't going to work. I'm not stupid."

He stepped forward and stretched out a hand. "Jinx, this isn't a trap."

I shuffled back a step and felt my eyes glow a brilliant pink.

Kid Flash retracted his hand and cast about himself. Then his eyes lit up. "Wait here."

As if I had a choice. He was back in half a second, arriving in his usual blur of color. A red rose. He held it out to me, and looked me in the eye as he said, "Jinx, every single one of these roses that I gave to you – I gave them to you for a reason. I really do like you, Jinx. That's the truth. How could I lie to you about that?"

There was a moment's hesitation on my part, but I was set in my resolve, in my choice, and in my fate to forever be one of the bad guys.

"Nice try," I sneered at him, "But your stupid roses are never going to work on me ever again."

A snap of my fingers wilted the rose in his hands. Its petals fluttered down onto the street like so many broken feathers stained red.

"Jinx," Kid Flash looked at me with pleading eyes. "You belong with the Titans. Don't do this!"

"It's too late for me, Kid Flash," I only smiled at him, one completely devoid of happiness. "You were wrong. I really am nothing but bad luck."

"Jinx, just listen!" Kid Flash took a step forward.

"No!" I yelled back at him, fists clenched, eyes screwed shut, head down. I was done playing his games. Even if he wasn't lying, his past actions were too much for me to forgive him. The H.I.V.E had sent Linda, but he hadn't put up much of a resistance. In fact, he had fallen head over heels into their trap, deserting me for her. It didn't matter whether fate had sent her or my worst enemies. He had made his choice. And it wasn't me.

As I raised my head, I finally felt my face paint itself with my battle smirk. My hand came up, palm sparking pink.

"I think we're done here."

He didn't dodge, and I was gone before he could even raise himself off the ground.

…..

I woke as the train slowed into a station. Rubbing my eyes, I checked that my hood and sunglasses were still in place, then stretched and glanced to the side. A newspaper headline greeted me.

**VILLIANS RAMPAGE THROUGH LEAF, LED BY EX-TITAN**

And there was a picture too.

It was quite a good picture, considering the circumstances. I stood, legs spread a solid shoulder-width apart. My hand was lifted palm out, and pink hex magic radiated from my fingertips. Smoke and destruction seemed to rise up in my wake, and only a lone figure stood between me and the crowds of screaming people. Kid Flash.

You could only see his back, but you could tell that he was sacrificing himself to save the city… from me.

And in the foreground, if you squinted the tiniest bit, you could make out a crushed, mutilated rose, blackened with soot. The H.I.V.E. Five's plan had been to frame me. And I had fallen for it.

The sinking, despairing feeling in my gut melted my shock, and fear catapulted me through the shutting door of the train. Several people stared at me as I sprinted through the station, up the stairs, and into daylight. Leaning against a building, I pressed a hand to my chest –a weak attempt to slow my thumping heart.

After a minute of deep breaths, I straightened…and then recognized the skyline.

Whether by some cruel twist of fate or by the unconscious direction of my internal compass, I had gotten off the train at Jump Station. I was in Jump City.

My immediate reaction was to turn right around, fly back down the steps, reboard the subway, and run away. Then I realized that I had almost no money left. I had just enough to buy some food for dinner, and even though I was wanted for a supposed return to villainy, I wasn't going to stoop to the H.I.V.E Five's level and steal anything.

Then I blinked, feeling calm and even the tiniest thrill of excitement descend on me. Maybe this was my chance to finally get away from the curse of my bad luck powers – a chance to be normal. I could escape into the crowds of civilians in the streets and no one – not the H.I.V.E or the Titans or Kid Flash – _no one_ would ever find me.

Taking one, final deep breath, I began to walk down the street, planning. I'd use the rest of my money to buy some hair dye and contact lenses – brown probably. It was the farthest from pink that I could think of. And then I'd get a job, make some money, and maybe if my luck held out, live the normal life I'd always wanted.

And to complete the transformation, I'd change my identity. I couldn't be Jinx anymore, but I still had an old contact from my shadier past. He could run up a fake birth certificate and passport for me.

As for my name: Jennifer Rose, I decided.

The last name would be a bitter reminder of my hard-learned lesson – that I could trust no one. Not even myself. The heart lies, just like everyone else.

But as I walked down the street, moving with new purpose, dark, heavy "maybes" chewed at my heart. Maybe I'd chosen my name for a different reason. Maybe I didn't want to simply punish myself for my supposed stupidity. Maybe, some day, I wanted Kid Flash to be able to find me.

Because, maybe secretly, in the deepest crack in the farthest corner of my heart, I had always wanted him to chase after me.

Maybe just to show me that he cared.

* * *

Ok, turns out that I've written the rest of the story :D And no, I'm not lying. My muse hit me over the head with a baseball bat or something because I spent all weekend writing Fanfiction non-stop. :D It was really nice - liberating almost - compared to the drudgery of AP English... X.X

I'll be updating Friday nights, so look forward to that!

Thanks to those of you who have been such faithful (and forgiving!) readers, I appreciate you guys so much. :)

-K


	11. Intervention

(Ok, for the record, I've changed the name and description of this fic because I thought that it sounded too dark for the content. Used to be "Forsaken in the Darkness", but it's still the same fic. Promise.)

:D Please don't kill me! Haha, I'm actually very happy that you all were looking forward to the update... or the two of you who messaged me. ;)

From now on, Saturdays are going to be my update days because Friday nights I remembered that I have to go to church...

Well, on with the fic! I let the actual Teen Titans have a little bit more airtime. :D Hopefully I kept them in character...

And unless you can't read the bold, italics at the beginning, this is set in the present, after Kid Flash and Jinx have their fight in the Jump City Tower. I guess last time when it was a flashback, I didn't make it clear enough... ;P

-K

* * *

_**Two Years Later: Present Day**_

"_Please Raven! Just talk to her for me, will you?"_

"_No, this is your problem, Kid Flash. You need to fix it."_

"_But what if she starts attacking me again? She might hurt herself!"_

_Sigh. "Fine. I'll talk to her during her last healing session. But you need to talk to her yourself."_

"_Thanks Rae. Knew I could count on you."_

"_Whatever, just give them back, and never speak of this to anyone. Ever."_

"_Oh? You mean the pictures of BB I found in your room? Drat. Almost made it to the computer… Really though, thanks Raven."_

"_Yeah. I know."_

…

Raven perched on the edge of my bed in the medical bay, her dark blue cloak starkly contrasted against the white hospital sheets.

I looked down at her glowing hands hovering over my midsection.

"You're lucky."

She quirked a brow and frowned, stating in her monotone, "I can't have feelings or emotions. How am I lucky?"

I looked up and smiled – or tried to smile. It was awkward talking to the one girl I used to fight against so often.

"I wish I could heal… Or shield or _something_," I said, half-jokingly. "I can only destroy."

My voice sounded more bitter than I had intended. Slightly embarrassed, I raised my hands above my head and turned them over in the light, inspecting them.

"That's true," said Raven, focusing on her work.

Dropping my hands, I glanced back at her. "Aren't you supposed to console me or something?"

A small hint of a smile flickered at the corners of her mouth. "If you want somebody to console you, go ask Starfire."

"But if I want someone who completely ignores her feelings for a certain green changeling, I guess you're the girl, right?" I smirked up at her playfully.

The slightest of blushes tinged Raven's cheeks, even though she stated coolly, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

But her powers flared tellingly above my stomach for a moment before she frowned and brought them back under control.

I smiled to myself. Knew it. "So did anything happened between you two while I was gone? Two years is a long time."

Raven opened her mouth to reply, thought better of it, and closed it.

"If you don't want your stomach where your spleen should be," Raven threatened, completely monotone, "then I suggest that we drop the subject."

I laughed. "Sorry."

We sat in silence for a minute or so. Then Raven motioned for me to turn over on my side so she could have better access to my ribs.

Facing away from her, I asked, "So what was it like with me gone?"

I heard Raven respond from behind me, "I suppose you're really asking how Kid Flash was."

Free to grimace without her noticing, I did.

She continued, "Honestly, at the end of first year, Robin had to go over there and talk to Kid Flash personally. He was moping around like a lost man, barely fighting any crime, sleeping away half the day, and spacing out the few hours he was awake."

I scoffed. "I'm sure Linda kept him great company."

Raven raised an eyebrow at me. "That's part of the story he'll have to tell you himself, but all I know is that after you left, he refused to see her. And she tried to see him – many times."

Examining the floor, I muttered, "It was probably an act. I saw them together…and…" I shook my head to clear away the bad memories. "Just go on."

"Well, when Robin came back from Leaf Metropolis, he started searching for you. I guess he had made some sort of promise to Kid Flash. And like with most things, Robin found what he was looking for… Jennifer Rose, huh?"

I froze to the bed. "You guys knew all along? But why didn't you go after me?"

I felt Raven's powers stop for a moment before she started up again, presumably on another of my bruised ribs. "Robin found your civilian record – completely clean, of course. So once he decided that the allegations against you were false and that you hadn't gone back to the H.I.V.E., he left you alone."

I winced at the lack of faith people seemed to have in me, but Raven caught the slight motion.

"I think that's just the way Robin is. We all knew you were too sincere in your reform to go back to those idiots. And too proud."

I laughed. That was exactly right. I lay for a moment, thinking. "Isn't it kind of weird that the government gives you so much access to private files?"

"We need those files to track down criminals," Raven said. "But yeah, it's weird."

I cracked a grin. "Not as weird as Beast Boy not making a move in two years."

"Enough." Raven used her powers to flick my forehead. "I have an idea. Let's talk about _your_ love life."

Joking gone, I tried to turn farther away from her. "What's there to talk about?"

"Not much, unless you want to talk about it."

Crossing my arms over my chest, I almost snapped, "Well, what else is there to talk about? He led me on. He didn't trust me. He lied to me. And he chose _her_ over me. That's something I can never forgive." Raven was silent for a moment, and I softened, wondering if I had been too harsh. "Sorry. It's just–"

"I know. It hurts, doesn't it," she finally said, her voice quiet.

For a moment, we were both silent, thinking, then she spoke up, "It hurts, but at least I gave him a chance to apologize."

I rolled over and looked her in the face. Scowling slightly, I said, "What if I don't think he deserves the chance?"

Letting her powers flicker off, Raven dropped her hand to rest on my shoulder. "Give him the benefit of _your_ doubt. And I know you have doubts. That's the only reason you cling to that crumbling rose petal in your wallet so much."

My eye drifted to the nightstand next to the bed. I kept my painful remainder on me always. As Jennifer, every time I seemed to get close to a guy, the petal seemed to pulse almost painfully, causing me to draw away, to wall off my heart.

It had always bothered me, but the emotion forcing me away from male contact had always seemed so familiar. Only now, with Raven's words, did I pinpoint it as _guilt_. I had unconsciously felt guilty for cheating on Kid Flash. Even after everything he put me through, I was still attached to him.

Grappling with my revelation, I stayed silent.

Rising, Raven said, "Even if he did mess up before, he's sincere now. And that's all that should matter."

Her steps echoed across the room, and I watched as she stopped right before the door.

"Your emotions aren't dangerous. Loving him can't destroy buildings or endanger lives," Raven murmured as she glanced away. Looking up, she smiled sadly. "So I guess you are the lucky one after all."

And I had no retort for that.

…

"_Shut up! They'll hear us!"_

"_Well, maybe I would if you stopped pushing!"_

_Silence descended as two very anxious ears clamored for space against the metal door. The words were quiet, but both could make out most of the conversation going on so innocently on the other side of the door. _

"_Green…changeling… Hey! She's talking about me – isn't she? Is she? Oh crud– I–"_

"_Shh!" ...  
_

"_Dude… you suck. How could you do that to Jinx?"_

"…_I didn't know… But it sounds like you did it too."_

"_No fair! I had no idea–" ...  
_

"_Hey, KF–"_

"_Shut up, Beast Boy. I'm trying to listen!"_

"_Dude! Raven's coming this way!"_

_Both eavesdropping heroes sped away as fast as they could, unfortunately before they could hear the last and most clear lines of the conversation. _

….

"_Hey Cyborg, could you do me a favor?"_

"_Sure K-Flash, what's up?"_

….

I heard the medical bay's door _whoosh_ open. Quickly, I snapped my eyes shut and evened my breathing. I didn't want to have to face anybody right now. Especially not Kid Flash. I just didn't know what to do about him anymore – especially after my talk with Raven. Apparently, after all of the pain and torment and doubt, I still held… feelings for him.

It would be best to pretend to sleep until he left.

A deep voice resonated through the room. "I already know you're awake, Jinx. Your vitals gave you away."

It wasn't Kid Flash, but someone almost as bad. Ston– Cyborg had only been messing with me at H.I.V.E Academy– playing with my feelings, just like Kid Flash. Except Cyborg had an excuse; he was doing undercover work for the Titans and had been trying to blend in as much as possible.

Kid Flash had just been cruel.

"C'mon Jinx. I can still read your monitors – even after you totaled them."

An exasperated huff escaped my lips, and I forced myself to open my eyes and look up at Cyborg.

Then I blinked back my confusion. He held a single, long-stemmed rose. I felt my heart skip a beat in shock – not the delicious thump like when a certain red-haired superhero sped into the room – but still, surprised at this strange turn of events.

Were the rumors of him and Bumble Bee a thing of the past?

Cyborg must have noticed my confusion and he laughed. "Don't worry, it's from K-Flash. I'm still with Bee."

K-Flash? _Kid _Flash, I assumed. Cyborg had never been one for formalities. An hour before, I heard him calling outside the medical bay for Beast Boy to "pass the stank ball".

But a rose from Kid Flash?

I took the flower delicately, almost as if I expected it to explode. Well… almost. I had attacked him after all.

Cyborg began fiddling with the monitors on the far side of the room. I had apparently broken most of the medical equipment in my vengeful attempts to do Kid Flash in. And I had almost succeeded in my revenge, but in the end I hadn't been able to pull it off.

Sighing, I tossed the rose onto the bed. How naïve of him, though. Did he think a single rose would be able to fix everything between us?

But how naïve of me. Did I think that harming him bodily would turn back time and heal my broken heart?

Then I caught sight of the note attached to the rose's stem. I reached for it and unfolded the paper, smoothing out the wrinkles.

"_I know this won't mean much to you, since the last time, you claimed that you'd never fall for my tricks again. But I couldn't help it. Think of it as a habit of mine. Or an impulse. But hopefully this rose can open your heart just a little bit. _

_I have a lot to explain, and so do you. _

_Truce until after we talk? If you still hate me after that, I won't dodge whatever you have in store for me. Hero's honor."_

It was signed "Kid Flash", and the post-script read, _"Besides, I paid for part of my punishment. Raven made me clean up all the broken glass and stuff. I was in a rush and cut my finger. :("_

I couldn't stop the smirk twitching at the corners of my mouth. Almost fighting with my facial muscles, I got the traitors under control again, and folded the note with a scowl on my face. But the image of Kid Flash zipping around with a plastic band-aid on his finger was a stubborn one.

Sobering myself, I tossed aside the rose and note. On one hand, I didn't want to hear his stupid apologies and pleas for forgiveness. Feelings or no, after two years of carrying my stupid, heavy heart around like the burden it was, I wasn't about to drop my grudge just like that. Remnant feelings or not.

On the other hand, a small part of me wondered… Was there really another side to the story? I had seen what I had seen, but then again so had Kid Flash when I attacked Linda. I thought that I knew the whole story, but did I really?

Were my motives as pure as I thought they were? (Even if my deeds weren't.) Two years ago with the H.I.V.E, it was my goal to be as bad as I possibly could – to get respect – some form of appreciation and recognition as more than just _bad luck_.

But Kid Flash had changed all of that. He made me care – made me want to change – and I had never really repaid him for helping me turn my life around. I hadn't given him the benefit of the doubt at the time – or much afterwards either…

_Although_, snickered the reemerging part of my mind, _you get to blast him to kingdom come when it's over. What's there to lose?_

So before I could stop my hand, I wrote "OK" on the back of the note and handed it to Cyborg who had finished tinkering with his machines. He winked at me and placed a small bottle on my bed.

"Hair dye remover," he stated, tapping it. He smiled. "Thought that maybe you'd want to look the old you. The _real_ you."

As he turned and left, I picked up the bottle and considered tossing it in the trash. Jennifer or Jinx? Was this another of those life-altering decisions? Did it really all rest in this little bottle of chemicals?

Sighing, I placed the bottle on my nightstand, next to my wallet, and I let my head drop down onto the pillow. Fingering my now familiar but fake brown hair, I wondered if I had finally made the right decision.

…..

"Drumroll please… After two very long years, may I present to you, for the second time anywhere – the one, the only – _JI~NX_!"

I laughed. Beast Boy was making a big deal of things as usual. He had even busted out the microphone and spotlights. Self-conscious, I rubbed my pink hair and blinked my pink, cat-like eyes. Funny how little things like hair dye and contacts can mask so much. Or shield.

But the Teen Titans cheered. Cyborg whistled and Starfire cheerfully remarked, "Glorious!" Raven simply smiled, while Robin stated, "Looks good, Jinx."

But a quick glance around the room revealed no Kid Flash. Quickly hiding my disappointment, I smiled and descended the steps into the Common Room. Who needed him anyway?

Without my civilian t-shirt and jeans, I felt a little uncomfortable, but I was quickly easing into my new uniform.

The day of my discharge from the medical bay, Starfire burst in, twirling a brightly wrapped pink box around the room. Smiling broadly, she thrust it into my face.

"Good as the New!" she proclaimed, nodding happily at me. "Please accept this as the 'Welcome Home' present, as is customary on your planet. May it bring you much joy and happiness!"

Only slightly weirded out at the sudden intrusion, I took the box from her. "Thanks Starfire…" I unwrapped it. It was my old uniform… but different.

The changes were miniscule – a cut here, a stitch there, a redying of most of the fabric – but it was no longer my H.I.V.E. uniform. It was the Hero version.

There aren't many colors that go with bright pink, but Starfire had managed to find the perfect shade of sky blue, coupled with my previous dark blue, to coordinate with my hair and eyes. And the cut of the dress was different too. It didn't quite look like the Evil Sorceress getup I had intended it as, but rather was more flattering to my form and gentler to the eye.

Struck speechless, I could only stare happily at my new hero uniform.

Starfire touched my shoulder. "You… do not like it?" she asked uncertainly.

Shaking myself aware, I jumped forward and hugged her. "No! I love it! Thank you Starfire…"

"Oh! Friend Jinx, I am so pleased that you enjoy the gift!" And then Starfire tried to hug me back.

Let's just say I almost didn't get released from the medical bay after that.

In the Common Room at my "Welcome Back" celebration, I smiled back at Starfire who floated over to me, grabbed my hands, and began spinning me around the room. "Oh! Friend you look magnificent!"

I laughed. I _felt_ great… Except she was starting to spin awfully fast.

A black aura surrounded me, prying me from Starfire's dizzying whirlwind, and I found myself rising out of the floor next to Raven.

"Before the G-force kicked in and you fainted," Raven explained, with the smallest of smiles.

"Hey, Jinx!" Robin called over to me. I glanced over to see the kitchen piled high with mountains of food – mostly meat and… oh god, was that tofu?

Raven, Starfire, and I joined the boys in the kitchen.

"To celebrate, the Titans boys worked together to make dinner," Robin motioned with one gloved hand.

The Titans boys? Did that include Kid Flash too? I was about to ask when Beast Boy and Cyborg popped up from behind one mountain, obviously arguing over the tofu.

"Nobody likes that stuff, BB!"

"Says _you_! Watch this–"

Beast Boy sidled up to me and with a flourish presented a trembling tower of tofu cubes. "Try one Jinx! You'll totally like it!"

Trying to smile, I plucked up a quivering cube and popped it into my mouth. Rubbery and truly horrifying. Barely managing to control my bulging eyeballs and gag-reflex, I swallowed quickly, wishing that I had a soda or _something_ to wash the taste away.

To everyone else in the room, it looked as though I had devoured it.

Beast Boy broke out in a toothy grin. "Well…?" he asked expectantly.

"Uhm… it was…" I fumbled, eyeing the Coke in Robin's hand. "…interesting…?"

Beast Boy whooped and struck a triumphant pose in front of Cyborg. "Told you! I _so_ told you!"

"Man, she's just being _nice_!"

"And you're in denial!"

"Beast Boy," Raven cut in. "She hates it."

Everyone laughed at the stricken look that crossed Beast Boy's face as he caught me chugging a soda behind Starfire. I smiled guiltily and everyone laughed again.

_I wish that he were here. _

I blinked. Where had that thought come from? Shaking it from my head, I stood back and admired the cheerful, chattering group of heroes in front of me.

No… I didn't need him… Not ever again.

Painting a smile on my face, I rejoined the party. But in all of the commotion, I didn't notice that Robin had disappeared.

….

_Kid Flash heard the door to the roof open and shut. He squashed the fleeting hope that somehow Jinx had found him. She was down at the party. Why would she leave?_

_ And, as he predicted, it wasn't Jinx; it was Robin._

"_Why aren't you down there with us?"_

_ Kid Flash didn't waver, continuing to gaze at the horizon. "I thought that I'd give her some space…"_

_ "Well, your 'space' is making her miserable. You might think you're doing the right thing, but you're not."_

_ Finally turning, Kid Flash treated Robin with one of his rare glares. "What do you want from me Robin? She said she'd talk to me – but what does it matter? She still hates me."_

_ Robin stood with his arms crossed solidly over his chest. "Something I learned early on is that it's not what people say that counts – it's what they do. And Jinx's actions say that she's still hurting, but she misses you."_

_ "Yeah. Blowing up an entire room trying to kill me is very loving."_

_ "But she didn't kill you, did she?" Robin pointed out. "If I remember correctly, she cornered you a couple of times, but she never could bring herself to hurt you."_

_ Kid Flash raised an eyebrow. "…Were you spying again?"_

_ "No." Robin objected a little too quickly. "I was just making sure that you weren't actually in any danger. And security cameras are completely legitimate."_

_ "Right…"_

_ "Why do you think none of the Titans came to help you that day?"_

_ "…?"_

_ "We all knew that she wouldn't actually hurt you. She still likes you – a lot."_

_ "…"_

_ "And if you don't do something soon, that might just change."_

_ There was silence for a moment, before Kid Flash cracked a sly grin, "So have you asked Starfire out yet?"_

_ "…No."_

_ "Well…'If you don't do something soon…'"_

_ "Shut up."_

_

* * *

_

Yes, btw, I am a BBRae fan (it says so on my profile, so I'm free from guilt), and RobStar is just canon, and you gotta know that I love all things canon... Except where Terra comes in. Hahaha

Well, everything's coming to a close here for Jinx and Kid Flash. Hopefully with the HIVE not interfering, they'll actually be able to pull it all together. :D

-K


	12. Forgiveness

Last chapter.

-K

* * *

It was dark when I finally crashed in the Titan's guest room. A long night of laughter, games, and Kid Flash-free fun.

I frowned at that last bit. After tonight, I didn't know whether to call him a coward for not having the courage to face me or a disappointment for not showing up and celebrating my return to hero work. If he had come that night, I was planning on calling a truce with him – at least for one night.

The party had been enjoyable, but it had been missing something… Missing _him_.

Sighing to myself as I curled up on the bed, I entertained the idea that maybe I had had too much soda, and all this _forgiveness_ was just a side effect of crashing off a sugar high.

Snuggling beneath the covers, I closed my eyes. And tossed. And turned. And tossed again.

Throwing my arm over my eyes, I grumbled, "Stupid soda," and rolled out of bed. Pulling on my new boots, I headed out towards the Common Room. But after sitting on the couch all alone in the dark for a few minutes, I sighed and walked out. Running my hand restlessly through my hair, I fished out the blue hair ties Starfire had made for me. They were a little different than my old ones, and tied my longer hair into two flowing pigtails instead of horns.

I roamed the hallways for a little bit and thought that I spotted Beast Boy hovering near Raven's door, but when I backpedaled, I saw nobody there. There might've been a green fly on the wall, but I shrugged and smiled secretly to myself before continuing on.

At the end of the residential wing, I found a door marked, "Stairs". Taking them down two at a time, I burst from the Tower onto the rocky shore, hoping to catch… who unaware – I have no idea. Sighing in the fresh night air, I returned to the Tower. I sat in the foyer for a while, before getting up and into the elevator.

I looked over the floor buttons before jabbing my floor. I felt the elevator rise, considering the last ride I had in a Titan's elevator…with Linda. Groaning to myself I clicked the button again in a vain attempt to hurry up the ride.

Then I spotted a button at the very top of the rows marked "R". R for roof?

The elevator beeped as it reached my floor, but I stayed inside, contemplating. I stepped back and pressed the R button. The elevator began rising again, and I leaned in the back, watching the floor numbers tick by.

It beeped again, and I stepped out. A short flight of stairs ended before a door with a small window peeping a starry sky. Nervous energy suddenly drained, I took a hesitant step forward. And then another.

Then I was up the stairs, clasping the doorknob to the outside. A moment's hesitation, and then I threw open the door. Only when I saw his silhouette bathed in moonlight did I realize that my midnight wanderings hadn't been aimless.

I had been looking for Kid Flash.

I stood immobile as I studied his moon-tinged outline. Kid Flash spoke, not bothering to turn around.

"Go away, Robin. I'm not going to sleep tonight. You of all people should understa–" he broke off as he turned.

We stayed frozen that way for a moment: him seated on the edge of the roof, long legs tucked up under his elbows, and me with one hand still on the doorknob, halfway on and off the roof.

Kid Flash broke the silence first. "Jinx." He shot up in surprise.

Still struggling to keep my ground and not run away, I gripped the doorknob more firmly. "…Hey."

An awkward silence passed between us.

I'm sure he saw me grappling with my hand. My entire body screamed _Run away!_ But my hand was stubborn and refused to let me leave, almost fusing me to the door.

Frowning at the floor, I ordered myself to leave – before I could do something I'd regret for the rest of my life. Like trust him again.

…No.

I had to face this or forever be haunted by it. Raven's words echoed through my mind. _Even if he did mess up before, he's sincere now. And that's all that should matter._

Taking one step, and then another, I finally allowed myself to let the doorknob go. I crossed my arms over my chest and glanced at Kid Flash. "So why're you up here?"

Kid Flash shot me the ghost of a grin. "I could ask you the same thing."

I shrugged, playing nonchalance. "You wanted to talk. But you never… I mean – It's been a week since I got your note – and I guess that I…yeah…" I broke off, lamely.

There was silence once again, and after a moment, I shivered.

"You're cold," he said taking a hesitant step towards me. "If you… want to talk, we could go inside–"

"No," I interrupted. "It's fine out here."

And it _was_ fine. In ways, I needed the wide, open expanse of night sky and the endless blanket of stars. I felt as if I would need the entire world to breathe in as we talked.

Swallowing hard, I walked towards him and sat next to where he had been sitting. Looking up at him expectantly, I quirked an eyebrow. "Well…? You're the one that wanted to talk."

Kid Flash blinked. "Oh. Right." And he sat down again.

He didn't immediately start, so I watched the horizon. The stars were bright that night, shining out among the clouds. I hoped that it was a promising omen. I glanced up, only to find Kid Flash staring at me.

Confused but feeling the beginnings of a blush creeping on, I turned away. I was about to snap him out of his thoughts, but he spoke first.

"I like your hair this way," he murmured softly, as if to himself. I felt a slight pressure and glanced up. He was running his fingers through several strands of my hair, almost mesmerized.

"Uhm…?"

His eyes widened and he snapped out of it. Instantly, he was up on his feet, several feet away, waving his hands in front of himself as a gesture of innocence. "Sorry, Jinx. Sorry. I don't know what came over me."

Trying desperately to hide me growing blush, I just shook my head.

"It's fine," I muttered hoarsely, wondering if he could hear my heart pounding or maybe the butterflies tearing their way through my stomach and up my spine.

Slowly and cautiously, Kid Flash retook his seat next to me.

"I grew my hair out," I spoke up, desperately fishing for a topic. "Starfire gave me the hair ties."

"And a new outfit," he said, his tone appreciative. "It looks good."

I only glanced away and nodded. "I like it too. It makes me feel like…" I laughed softly and said, "Forget it. What were we going to talk about?"

"No," Kid Flash leaned the slightest bit closer. "Finish your sentence."

"No," I muttered, frowning, "It's really stupid."

"Just say it, then."

Sighing, I murmured, "It makes me feel like a hero. Not like such a villain."

Kid Flash laughed. I shot him a glare. "What?" I demanded, my anger coming back much too easily. "I said it was stupid–"

"That's not it," he shook his head, "I laughed because it's funny. I never considered you a villain."

I looked at him, very much confused.

He, in turn, gazed out at the flat, endless ocean. "Even when you were with the H.I.V.E., you never seemed like the type to me. You were too good for that villain stuff. And I guess I could sense it or something, which is why I wanted to help you out of it."

Drawing my knees into my chest and tucking my arms over them, I followed his gaze out to the horizon. I sighed, and dropped the bombshell. "If you could sense it, why didn't you trust me?"

Kid Flash turned to respond and hesitated. He glanced away and sighed, "I don't know. I've asked myself that question every single day for the past two years – and I still don't really know."

"Because you didn't trust me," I finished grimly for him.

"Because I didn't trust my own judgment," he corrected almost bitterly. Running a hand through his hair, he sighed again. "That's probably the reason why. It's not that I didn't trust you – I didn't trust myself."

My eyes narrowed. Could _I_ trust _him_ now? But he had promised to tell me his side of the story, so no matter how improbable, I had to listen.

"Do you remember the day before you… before I lost you…how we fought?"

I nodded slowly. What was he getting at?

"Well, after you turned me down for the date – now I know that you really were just joking – but at the time, it hit me pretty hard," he said and laughed sadly.

I sat and listened.

"I mean– I've been a hero all of my life. I've always been _right_," he shook his head and pressed a hand to his forehead. "But for once, I'd been _wrong_ about something. And that confused me.

"You know, after you left, it seemed like I couldn't do anything right anymore. I wasn't sure which way was right or left. The team started to complain that I was ignoring missions. Finally, Hot Spot told me he was taking over – but he warned me that it was only temporary, and I could see that his heart wasn't really in it.

"Everything was falling apart because of me. But all that did was prove that I was even more wrong than before," Kid Flash ended, letting his hand fall into his lap. "It proved that I wasn't _right_."

"Kid Flash…" I reached out to him, but recoiled almost instantly as the doubts set back in. He wasn't the only one who'd had problems. And his sob story didn't change anything, I decided. My bitter scowl crawled back onto my face.

"Well, what about Linda, then?" I spoke, voice strained with tensely-hidden malice. "You certainly weren't confused about _her_."

Kid Flash frowned. "Jinx, what are you talking about?"

"I saw you in the security room! You were…" I lost my courage and turned away scowling. "You were kissing her! _Touching_ her!"

Kid Flash sat, stunned. Taking his silence as his guilt, I gripped my knees even tighter, digging my nails into my palms to keep myself from crying the hot, angry tears welling up in my chest. All of my sudden, hidden hope that there was some excuse for his behavior suddenly dashed itself to pieces. A familiar aching sensation wrung my heart.

_See? You lied to me…_

"Jinx… Jinx, look at me…"

I shook my head, not trusting myself to speak.

"Jinx–" A hand clamped down on my shoulder, spinning me back around to face him. His blue eyes were narrowed in remembrance. "Jinx, she had a recorder – she was trying to frame you! I only did those things to save you!"

I gazed at his face for a moment, at his desperate expression. Then I shook my head, eyes wide and fearful. Forever afraid of being deceived and hurt. "No… Lies… They're all lies."

"Jinx," Kid Flash gripped my shoulder more tightly. "I'm not lying!"

To avoid my fear, anger flashed through my system. I smacked his hand away from my shoulder and jabbed a finger at him. "_You_ never trusted me – so why should I trust you?"

Kid Flash recoiled, still gazing at me. "Jinx…"

I ignored him. "And you _lied_ to me! You said all of these things – You can be good, Jinx. You don't have to be a H.I.V.E. member. You're better than all that. – but when push came to shove, you never really believed it yourself!" I accused.

Kid Flash was only silent, taking my abuse.

"And all the roses – all of your slick little tricks to lead me on – I bet you never really meant any of it!"

"Jinx!"

I jerked to a halt. Kid Flash's eyes bored into mine, causing me to stumble in my fury.

"Jinx, I never lied about that. I would never do that to you."

"You sure didn't show it," I retorted. "Even before the recorder, you still acted the way you did."

"Jinx… I'm sorry… She was a friend–"

"It doesn't change anything!" I snapped back, my anger restored at his denial. I felt myself fighting tears, but I soldiered on. "You still chose her instead of me! And after I left, you didn't even bother to look for me–!" My voice cracked under the emotion, and I turned away, ashamed of myself. I felt a tear snake its way down my face.

A soft hand took my chin and turned me to face him again. I looked up at him, vulnerable with my tear-streaked visage.

"I'm so sorry, Jinx," Kid Flash murmured, his blue eyes piercing in their remorse. "I didn't know you wanted me to find you. I would've called on every favor with every government and every superhero I've ever known. I would've stripped the H.I.V.E. bare looking for you. I would've searched forever if I had to…"

I inspected his face for the lies I had suspected for years. But I found none.

His fingers drifted from my chin, moving to brush against my face, wiping the tears from beneath my eyes. I blinked hard, feeling the last of my tears slide down and the tenderness as he swept them away.

"I'm so sorry, Jinx," he whispered, his eyes searching my face. "The last thing I wanted to do was hurt you."

He was so gentle and warm. I closed my eyes and leaned into his hand, finding that my own hand had drifted to cover his.

Another of those moments appeared, where my life balanced and could tip either one way or another, all resting on one decision. I had faced the same decision twice before – once in the museum where we had first met, once in the streets of Leaf Metropolis when I left him and hero work behind – but it had seemed like the past two years, every day had been the choice: Don't trust him.

And these past two years I had been miserable, I realized, _because_ I could not bring myself to trust him. He hadn't betrayed me; my own doubts and insecurities had.

But this time, I would not give into them. I would stay strong and believe that I really _was_ good, and that he truly did love me. And I would know that the past two years had been a mistake, but I would also be safe knowing that the future would be brighter. Especially with Kid Flash by my side.

So this time, I decided on the right choice. Trust him.

Opening my eyes and smiling, I whispered back, "I…forgive you."

A sudden rush of freedom and lightness consumed me, brilliant in weightlessness. I closed my eyes and smiled, savoring the experience. Free.

Then there was a soft pressure on my lips. My eyes flew open, meeting his. Our gazes locked and we stayed frozen like that, in crackling anticipation for a moment before–

"Dude! Keep it PG!"

"_**Shhh!**_"

Kid Flash and I both jerked away from each other. We turned to face the forgotten door, eyes wide.

"Darn it, Beast Boy! You blew our cover!"

"Dude, this is _so_ not my fault."

"Yeah… it is."

"Who dragged me from my room saying that Jinx was going to thrash K-Flash again? Oh right! That was _you_!"

"Please Friends, stop fighting! I believe Kid Flash wishes to say something to us."

That of course stopped the Teen Titans' bickering.

Kid Flash and I stood in the doorway that led back into the Tower and gazed down in horror at the Titans, who were obviously in the middle of a fight on the floor. They looked up at us with wide eyes… Then, instantly, they leapt apart, each finding a sudden interest in the ground.

"Heh…heh…" Beast Boy laughed nervously. "Nice night, huh?"

"Uhm," Cyborg rubbed the back of his head. "I saw that the roof's door was open and… thought that it was a security risk?"

Raven just pulled her cloak's hood up to cover her blush.

"Spying again, are we Robin?" Kid Flash peered around him at the other guilty Titans. "Looks like it's contagious though."

Robin crossed his arms and huffed, "We were just making sure that you guys weren't going to start fighting again."

Kid Flash shook a finger at him. "That, sir, is _spying._"

"Please, Friend Kid Flash," Starfire floated up beside Robin. "We are all truly sorry to have ruined 'The Moment'. Perhaps if we leave, you and Friend Jinx might reclaim it?"

Kid Flash glanced at me. I looked up at him and smiled slightly. In return he reached down and squeezed my hand quickly before turning back to Starfire and Robin. "I think it'll be ok, Star. Let's just go to sleep."

Looking very guilty, but subtly pleased, the Titans left the rooftop for their own rooms. Except Raven and Beast Boy, who both disappeared in Raven's signature black pool of energy. I raised an eyebrow but inside I was smiling broadly.

Everything was starting to turn out ok.

Once at the residential wing, Cyborg yawned mightily, bid everyone a good _morning_, and then vanished into his room to sleep some more. Robin saw Starfire to her room, and then disappeared into his.

Which left me alone with Kid Flash.

"So…" I said slowly. I could feel the light blush painting my cheeks, and I looked down, playing with the end of a pink pigtail.

Kid Flash shot me his trademark grin. The butterflies were back, tickling my stomach. I watched in surprise as he swept a graceful bow and glanced back up at me, grinning all the while. "Shall I escort Mademoiselle back to her room?"

Laughing, I played along and curtsied. "That, my good sir, would be wonderful."

Straightening up quickly, he held out the crook of his arm, and I rested my hand on it. We walked back to the guest rooms in companionable silence. Once we reached my room, I signaled the door open and turned awkwardly to face him.

But he was already turning to leave. He smiled and waved at me from halfway down the hall. "'Kay then! See ya tomorrow, Jinx!"

My expression fell straight off my face. "Oh… Good…night."

Slipping into my room, very much disappointed, I sighed and began towards my bed.

"Hey."

What the–! I whirled.

And there was Kid Flash, inches from my face. With me still in shock, he cupped my chin gently in one hand and wound his other arm around my waist.

"Just kidding," he murmured with a grin. And then he kissed me.

You know those people who say that first kisses aren't special, that they're ordinary and simply over-hyped? Well, those people are wrong.

That night, I felt light, saw sound, touched _love_. Fireworks and volcanoes and earthquakes, all rolled up into one mind-shatteringly unbelievable experience.

He was gentle at first, pressing his lips sweetly against mine, but he quickly deepened the kiss, begging for entrance with a longing words cannot begin to describe. I've never felt so hungry before. So needy. I gave in, and I tasted him, explored the sweetness, felt the electricity arc its way up my spine.

_Finally_, I thought when I had a spare moment to breathe. _Finally_.

And hesitantly at first, and then more boldly, I reached up and twined my fingers behind his neck, stroking the back of his head, running my hands through his hair. And he pulled me more tightly to his body until I was flush up against him, until I could feel the warmth radiating from him and long for more of that warmth.

Breaking shortly for breath, I dropped my hand to his chest, felt our hearts beating as one. He stroked my cheek with his thumb, and then ran his hand through my hair, loosening the hair ties and stroking his way gently through the strands.

I gasped into his mouth as I felt his hands – his actual skin – not the red gloves he always wore, touching me. Somehow, he had found time to take them off, but I didn't wonder for long. After all, he was the Fastest Boy Alive.

His skin was rough, calloused from fighting crime, but quickly I found that I didn't mind. His touch was so soft and tender as he grazed the back of my neck, skimmed my back, and clutched me tighter to him – as if he never wanted to let me go.

Never again.

Dipping down to kiss me one final time, Kid Flash pulled back, brushed his lips against my nose, my forehead, then finally kissed the top of my head. He sighed into my hair while I clutched myself to his chest, safe in his embrace.

"You don't know how long I've been waiting to do that."

I smiled and nuzzled into him, enjoying how my head tucked perfectly under his chin. "Just as long as I have."

After a few moments of contented silence, I slipped my arms around his neck, fingers tingling at the warmth. I looked up at him.

"So what?" I asked, quirking an eyebrow. "We live happily ever after or something?"

Kid Flash pretended to think for a moment before he looked down and flashed me his usual grin. "Maybe with some luck…"

And returning his smile, I leaned up in his arms and pressed my lips to his. Grinning into the kiss, I murmured, "Guess what?"

"What?"

"I'm feeling lucky."

* * *

JK, there's going to be an epilogue. :)

In the middle, can you guess which of the Titans are saying what?

Thanks for keeping up! :D

-K


	13. Happily Ever After

Hello all! Last chapter! I'm serious this time. :D

* * *

The next morning, I woke up and had a panic attack.

Remembering the night before, I bolted up straight in bed, breathing harshly. Oh god, what if it had all been a dream? What if none of it had been real? I didn't think that I could take that kind of–

"Morning, sunshine." A voice right next to me!

"Ah!" I spun around and blasted the source. Pillows, feathers, and mattress fluff exploded into the air. Coughing and batting the dust away from my face, I peered at what I had hit.

A… pillow? Cocking my head to the side in confusion, I wondered momentarily if I had simply imagined the voice–

"Hey, Jinx, looking for someone?" A yellow-masked face, blue eyes, and a shock of red hair popped into view.

Yelping again in surprise I raised my hands, only to find them tied into the sheets. A finger wagged in my face.

"Uh, Uh, Uh," said Kid Flash with a grin. "The Titans said no more fighting in their house, remember?"

"K-Kid Flash?" I spluttered, trying to yank my hands out of what appeared to be a very intricate and difficult knot. "What are you doing in my room?"

"Waking you up," he said simply. He lay on his stomach next to me, arms crossed under chin, and watched me struggle with the sheets, grinning all the while. "I heard that breakfast is like a battlefield around here and it's better to get up early."

"We were up all night talking, shouldn't we be sleeping in?" I protested, attempting to wriggle my wrist through the knot. No dice. Then I stopped, glancing up. "We…_were_ up all night talking, right? It wasn't just a dream?"

Kid Flash's grin widened. "Depends on what you want to call a dream."

Thinking about his words, I blushed. "Oh…" And to cover my embarrassment, I went back to battling the tied sheets. "What did you do? Melt them together?"

"Nope," he said and rolled off my bed, dashed across the room and to my closet. "Thought that would've been a bit extreme. Need any help?" He glanced back, beaming innocently.

I scoffed. It was just a stupid knot. "No."

Kid Flash shrugged. "Suit yourself."

He began picking up various mementos from my civilian life and inspecting them. A coffee mug that a female coworker had given me for Christmas, a small library of paperback books, a contact lens case that I had been planning to throw away. Luckily, I had hidden my sketchpad better this time.

Meanwhile, I was still stuck in bed.

"I thought Robin was the only Boy Scout around here," I grunted, trying to pull my hands apart enough so that I could hex the sheets to shreds without hurting myself.

"When you're one of the fastest people alive, you have a lot of time on your hands." Kid Flash shrugged, flipping through one of my books. "Did you know that Edward gets the girl in the end?"

"No! I mean yes, but–" I cast about myself for a sharp object. "I didn't read the end yet! Stop spoiling it!"

"Well everyone knows that the main guy always gets the main girl," he pointed out, turning the coffee mug over in his hands. "That's just the way it works."

"In...movies…" I strained, putting my foot between my hands like it was a stirrup and trying to push it off. "…and fairytales…maybe…"

"But we're neither, so what does that make us?"

I didn't respond. The sheets stayed stuck.

Kid Flash, bored with what little my room held, dashed back to my side. I found him lying beside me, arms crossed behind his head, and legs crossed one over the other –the picture of ease. He raised an eyebrow at me, "Well, you give up yet? We're going to miss breakfast."

Defeated, I crashed back into my pillow and groaned, "Fine."

Kid Flash laughed, took my outstretched arms, and a moment and a blur of red later, my hands were untied.

Rubbing my chaffed wrists, I scowled up at him. "Honestly, was all that necessary?"

"No," he grinned at me. "But I thought that it'd lighten the mood for this–"

He kissed me.

Shocked, it took me a moment to melt into him and appreciate the pleasure. And then I had an idea. When we broke away, breathing heavily, I took a moment, looked at him, and burst out laughing.

"What?" He stared down at me, beginning to look very dejected.

Pointing up at his hair, I rolled over, pealing with laughter. "Someone's having a bad hair day!"

Zipping over to my bathroom's mirror, he gazed up at his mussed, static-clingy hair.

"_That's_ what you get for messing with me," I called after him, wiping the tears from my eyes and trying to stay the hiccups of laughter that tickled my throat.

Mock-frowning at me, Kid Flash fixed his hair at lighting-speed. "Well, Miss Magic, I'm going down to breakfast. If you'd finally get out of bed, then maybe you can join me."

Grinning, I slipped out of bed, and watched him speed over to my door. He let it slide open, then he turned back to me, smirking.

"By the way, did you know you snore?"

Horrified, my face flushed red. _Did I?_

Kid Flash stepped out, and before zooming away, called back to me, "Just kidding!"

I sat stunned, then embarrassed, and then furious, and I swear the Tower shook as I roared out, "_**Kid Flaaash!**_"

...

Muttering to myself about stupid superheroes, I stalked into the Common Room. But as soon as I walked in, I had to duck, then whirl to the side to dodge again, blasting waves of hexes at projectiles to keep them from hitting me. A moment of reprieve, and I glanced back at the wall. What was attacking me?

Pancake batter glooped down the walls, oozing into small puddles at my boots.

"What the–" Stepping away in disgust, I accidentally exposed myself to the line of fire. A shot of batter whizzed toward me. Too late to dodge, I cringed behind my arms.

"Whoa! Watch it!" A strong arm yanked me behind a computer monitor. Grunting as I fell, I felt Kid Flash catch me.

"Ah… Thanks," I muttered, prying myself away and brushing imaginary dust – or pancake batter – off of my clothes. I glanced at the wall next to us, uncovered by the computer shield, and taking an obvious pounding from the slop-missiles.

I had suspected that when Kid Flash told me the Titans turned breakfast into a battlefield, he had been telling the truth –but this was insane!

"Didn't know the Titans favored hostile takeovers…" I muttered, running a hesitant finger through some of the batter oozing down the wall.

"Only during breakfast," Kid Flash laughed. "Oh. And I wouldn't eat that if I were you."

I quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Beast Boy's been experimenting with _tofu pancakes_."

Feeling my mouth go dry at the mere mention, I suppressed a repulsed shiver. "That's disgusting."

"Our other options aren't that great," Kid Flash said dryly. Pointing at different-colored globs, he indicated, "Starfire's are neon purple and _move_. Cyborg's put _meat_ into his. And Batman was probably too busy teaching Robin kung-fu instead of cooking. His are the ones that look like cinderblocks."

"And Raven? Poe Pancakes? Or is she trying to meditate her way out of this mess?"

Kid Flash laughed. "Actually, that's the weird thing. She's helping Beast Boy."

Shaking off my initial shock, I grinned. "Whatever happened between them, I'm glad it did."

Mirroring my smile, Kid Flash pulled me down farther out of harm's way, and we sat, listening to the pelting and yells as the other Titans battled it out.

After a moment, I asked, "So, want to go out for breakfast?"

"Thought you'd never ask."

But just as he was about to scoop me up and whisk me off to breakfast, an alarm went off. Luckily it wasn't the one indicating trouble. It was an incoming call.

_Deet-deet-deet-dee-deet-dee-deet-dee-deet._

We peeked around the computer and into the war zone.

"Hey," shouted Kid Flash "Anybody want to answer that?"

The barrage of breakfast ground to a halt, and as the dust settled, five very gooey Titans emerged. While Beast Boy and Cyborg continued to argue the ethics of meat, Robin walked forward to take the call. The main monitor sizzled with static for a second before the connection was established. Then Hot Spot, Jericho, and Herald transferred onscreen.

Robin blinked in surprise. "Hey! Titans Leaf, what's the problem?"

Hot Spot shook his head and grinned, "No problem. Just wondering when our _fearless leader_ is coming home."

Robin laughed a little, "He'll be coming home soon. I think he wanted to stay for breakfast though."

"Not that anything's edible," I muttered under my breath. Kid Flash laughed and made to zip over to the monitor to join the conversation.

Then Hot Spot grinned and said, "You tell him that he'd better come back with Jinx, or not come back at all!"

"Yeah," Herald interjected. "We're pretty sick of him moping around all the time."

Huffing, Kid Flash dashed to the front of the room and scowled at his team halfway across the country. "I do not _mope_."

While the two bantered back and forth, I began to sneak out of the Common Room. Kid Flash or no Kid Flash, I was still a little scared of meeting the team. I had walked out on them – a deserter – and possibly a villainess if the newspapers were to be believed. They might not be as forgiving as Titans West had been.

"Hold on a second, would you?" I heard Kid Flash say to the screen behind me. Then suddenly he was beside me, snatching me up in his arms. "Oh no you don't!"  
Milliseconds later I found myself plunked awkwardly in front of the screen. I swallowed hard and waved uncertainly. "Hey guys, remember me?"

I held my breath. Would the team take me back?

"Jinx!"

I flinched, before I recognized Hot Spot's tone as excited, not angry. Turning back, the image of all three boys clustered around the screen greeted me.

"It's good to see you again Jinx."

"You're coming back, right? We need somebody to keep the Speed-demon in line."

Jericho waved happily. I waved back, feeling a sheepish smile tint my lips.

"Could you stop badmouthing me," Kid Flash cut in jokingly. "Getting awfully uppity for a flamethrower."

Hotspot spluttered indignantly, and I grinned. Kid Flash interrupted again.

"Could you prep her room for her return? Furniture and stuff. Oh! By the way," Kid Flash slung his arm around me. "I hear she likes unicorns."

A pink burst zapped his arm off of my shoulders. Narrowing my eyes first at him, then at the screen, I growled, "No unicorns! You'd better not!"

Rubbing his smarting arm, Kid Flash grinned. "But I thought you liked them! Your sketchpad–"

Jabbing a finger at him, I snapped. "Will you leave me alone about that? Those unicorns were _sacrificial_ – and you know it!"

"Sacrificial… enshrined…" Kid Flash weighed the two in his hands before shrugging. "Looked all the same to me."

While we continued to banter, I heard Beast Boy break off his argument with Cyborg and call over to the screen.

"Yeah, hurry up and take him already," the changeling complained, dangling his Game Station controller from one hand dejectedly. "He keeps on beating us at video games."

Kid Flash shrugged and smirked. "Not my fault you can't keep up."

That's when the real alarm sounded. The one indicating trouble. Red, blaring alarms and lights flashed through Titans Tower.

The monitor shifted to reveal a map of Jump City, with a red, pulsing dot marking a robbery. Robin turned to us.

"Your homecoming will have to wait," he stated. "It's the H.I.V.E. Five."

My eyes narrowed swiftly, but when I looked up at Kid Flash, I could feel the beginnings of a smirk coming on.

"Looks like it's payback time."

...

Gizmo slung his bag of jewels over one tiny shoulder. "C'mon you scuzz-munchers! Let's get out of here before the Titans–"

A blue sonic blast knocked the jets off Gizmo's backpack. Screeching, he spiraled out of control, crash-landing in an explosion of smoke.

"Too bad we're already here," cooed Cyborg, smirking at the sooty Gizmo.

The rest of the Titans along with Kid Flash and I spread out to block the exit. The H.I.V.E. Five similarly fanned out. Then they spotted me. Standing by Kid Flash.

Their jaws dropped so far, they probably dented the bank's reinforced cement floor, especially See-Mores'. I simply grinned back.

"Surprised?" I asked and tipped my head to the side, pressing a slim finger to one temple. "If so, you guys are still a little slow up here."

Shaking away his shock, Gizmo pointed a quivering finger at me. "Shut up you stupid traitor!"

"Yeah," interrupted Mammoth, pounding a heavy hand into the floor. "We'll crush you and your little friends flat."

"Little?" Kid Flash wagged a finger at them. "Now, now. Let's not project anxieties."

"It is the Seven against the Five," proclaimed Starfire, hovering with green glowing hands. "Please reconsider fighting."

"Seven on five – them ain't very favorable odds," noted Billy Numerous, cocking his head to the side and then multiplying out until an army of red surrounded the Titans.

Robin scowled. "It doesn't matter how many of you there are–"

"We'll still take you down," I finished with a grin.

Irked, Gizmo shouted, "H.I.V.E. Five! Take 'em out!"

While the rest of the Titans scattered to fight their own opponents, I sighed at Gizmo. "Honestly? You could do so much better. It doesn't even rhyme anymore."

Dodging to two of Gizmo's rockets, I flung waves of hexes at him. He ducked on his metal wings and blew me a raspberry when I missed.

I tapped my head and pointed behind me. Both of his rocket's homing devices had malfunctioned, pink sizzling among the circuits. The missiles arced behind me and flew straight at Gizmo.

"Crud!"

_Boom_.

I cartwheeled over to the smoking wreckage and winked at the groaning genius. "Have you ever considered classes? You know, for the battle cries and all. It's a wonder how catchy a little rhyming is."

A red breeze passed in front of me. Kid Flash skid to a halt to admire my handiwork.

"Nice banter," Kid Flash commented appreciatively.

"Thanks," I said as my grin widened, "I've been working on it."

And I flung a series of hexes behind him at Kyd Wykkyd who was trying to snatch Kid Flash into a dark portal. Kyd Wykkyd collapsed to the ground, pink sparks sizzling across his body. Kid glanced back at me and saluted before dashing off to pummel Billy Numerous. I leapt over to help Raven with See-More.

Two minutes later, the Titans stood over a smoking pile of battered, groaning villains. We watched as the city's police cuffed them with power-inhibitors and led them away.

Raven floated down next to Beast Boy and asked, "So… Who bets that they'll stay put away for at least a week this time?"

"Two weeks if we're lucky," Beast Boy sighed.

"Well," Kid Flash placed a warm hand on my shoulder. "It's been fun. But we've got our own city to protect."

Robin stepped forward to shake both our hands. "Thanks for hanging around. Come by some time to visit."

"Yeah!" Beast Boy called out. "I have to beat you at Mega Monkey's 3000! I will beat you!"

"Some day…" muttered Cyborg. He grinned and high-fived me. "I'm glad I got to see you guys again. Come back soon, ya hear?"

"And next time we shall all go to the Mall of Shopping!" Starfire twirled in the air happily.

"Or have a nice talk," Raven nodded at me with a small smile.

I glanced up at Kid Flash and placed a hand over his on my shoulder. "We will," I promised, a smile blossoming over my face.

I felt his strong arms scoop me up, and then we were off.

In the moment it took to reach Leaf Metropolis, I felt certain in my future. I no longer had any doubts about my powers or my motives or my heroism. Kid Flash and I would be happy, and with him, I knew that I would stay lucky.

And maybe we would have our happily ever after, after all.

* * *

Thanks all of you faithful readers! :D You've seriously kept me going with all of your encouragement. Hopefully, now I can finish my two other unfinished fanfics. Haha And I'm probably going to go through in about a month, edit all the chapters, and repost them. I was reading through it, and I feel like Jinx could have been a little more in character... so hopefully if you check back in a month, I'll have that up. :)

Thanks again! I love you all! :D

-K


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